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Holy mackerel! Fewer imports mean higher prices as Norway mulls new quotas

Published: 24 Nov. 2025, 17:41

Norwegian mackerel are displayed at a supermarket in Seoul. [CHON KWON-PIL]

Korea's fish-loving shoppers are on edge as the price of Norwegian mackerel keeps rising due to lower stocks, with plans by the European country to cut its fishing quota for next year raising further concerns on supply and costs for one of the most widely consumed fish in Korea.

A section of the seafood display at a major supermarket in Seoul was filled with Norwegian mackerel last Thursday. A pack of two cost up to 14,980 won ($10), not much different from the price of domestic mackerel.

“I often buy Norwegian mackerel these days because it’s rich in fat, but the price keeps going up, so I hesitate every time,” said a shopper surnamed Lee.

Norwegian mackerel accounts for most of the mackerel imported into Korea — and its price has been rising sharply. The price of Norwegian mackerel exported to Korea reached $5.14 per kilogram (2.2 pounds) in October, according to the Norwegian Seafood Council.

That is nearly double the price in January of $2.71. The increase has grown steeper in the second half of the year.

The main reason is supply instability. The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) recommended in September that Norway and other relevant governments “ensure total Atlantic mackerel catches do not exceed 174,000 tons next year” — a 70 percent reduction from this year’s recommended catch of 577,000 tons.

ICES cited a sharp rise in seawater temperatures and a decline in prey, warning that Atlantic mackerel stocks face a risk of collapse. The council said that natural mortality is significantly high, and that new recruitment (when young fish transition to an older life stage and become part of the fishable population) has been very poor for years, adding that fishing pressure must be substantially reduced for the stock to recover.

An official takes samples from mackerels to check their radiation levels at a fish market in Busan on Feb. 28. [YONHAP]

The Norwegian government is negotiating next year’s mackerel quota with Britain and other countries based on the ICES recommendation. The final quota is expected as early as the end of this year, but given Norway’s emphasis on sustainable fisheries, a cut appears unavoidable.

The Norwegian Seafood Council said that the recommended ICES quota is roughly the same amount that Korea and Japan alone imported from Norway last year, and that because their quotas have largely followed the international body's recommendations, next year’s catch will likely be significantly lower than this year.

As a result, Korean importers are on high alert. Imports of Norwegian mackerel have steadily increased, reaching 43,093 tons in 2024 — about one-third of Korea’s domestic production. “There’s no room to raise prices further, so the only option may be to reduce portion sizes,” an importer said.

Prices of domestic mackerel have also surged. The consumer price of mackerel in October was 12,131 won per kilogram, up about 5.9 percent from a month earlier and 16.8 percent higher than in an average year, according to the Korea Maritime Institute.

The rise stems from a sharp drop in the supply of medium and large domestic mackerel — the sizes preferred by Korean consumers. From January to October, only 4.6 percent of mackerel caught were medium or large, just one-quarter of the usual 20.5 percent. Smaller mackerel are mostly exported, primarily to Africa.

Gosame's godeungeogui, or grilled mackerel. [LEE JUNG-JOO]

Because mackerel is considered a staple fish in Korea, price increases have a direct impact on household food costs. Until now, rising domestic prices were often offset by boosting imports from Norway. But with global mackerel supplies tightening across the Pacific and Atlantic, that option is becoming less viable.

“Mackerel stocks have already declined significantly due to overfishing, and climate change — driven ocean warming has pushed the ecosystem past a critical threshold, accelerating the collapse,” said Kim Do-hoon, a professor of fisheries economics at Pukyong National University. “With food security warning signs flashing red, expanded marine research and regulatory measures are essential for sustainable fisheries.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY CHON KWON-PIL [[email protected]]