Now, German market is favoring ready-to-eat, semi-processed, canned seafood products. German consumers give priority to products with reasonable price, high quality and easy to use. Formerly, German consumers liked products with reasonable price while in the past 10 years, they are in high demand for processed tuna.
Tuna consumption by German people in the period of 2006 - 2010 saw stability. Since 2010, the consumption reported a slight reduction. The average per capita consumption of the item in the country reached 2 kilogram per annum. According to report of Fisch Informationszentrum, tuna consumption accounted for nearly 11 percent of the country’s total seafood demand. According to International Trade Center (ITC), Germany ranked the 8th in importing tuna and the 7th in buying canned tuna in the world. Among top 7 largest canned tuna importers, Germany is claiming the highest growth in importing the item with its market share of more than 3.4 percent of the total canned tuna imports by the world.
Germany is importing tuna from over 41 suppliers around the world, in which top 5 largest suppliers are Ecuador (with the market share of 21 percent), Philippines (23 percent), Papua New Guinea (12 percent), the Netherlands (11 percent) and Vietnam (9 percent).
Germany sourced fresh tuna from developing countries, making up 40 percent of total imports by the country. Between 2006 and 2011, fresh tuna volume originated from developing countries to Germany reported the decrease of 86 percent. To compensate for the reduction, Germany boosted importing tuna from EU’s member countries.
However, frozen tuna imports into Germany from developing countries witnessed the increase of 40 percent to 63 MT in 2011 from 45 MT in 2009. Developing countries supplied 33 percent of frozen tuna to the market. Since 2007, Vietnam and Indonesia have been two leading suppliers of frozen tuna to the market. Besides, Germany also imported the item from other developing countries after being processed in the Netherlands. Developing countries mainly exported yellowfin tuna, albacore and bigeye tuna to German market.
At present, Germany only produces processed tuna products on the small scale. Tuna processors in the country mostly import raw tuna (in the form of steak) for processing. Imports of steak tuna by Germany occupied 40 percent of the country’s total dried/frozen/live/fresh tuna imports. However, most of the items are re-exported to the Eastern European countries.
After decline in 2010 due to low tuna consumption, tuna imports into Germany have kept rising with the growth. Total tuna imports into the country in 2013 reached more than 76.3 thousand MT, worth by US$429 million. In which canned tuna (HS code 16) is the main import item, making up 97 percent of the total imports per year. Tuna imports into the country in 2014 are expected to remain positive growth.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Although Germany’s tuna imports have declined, Vietnam’s tuna exports to the market continue to show positive signs. Notably, export value recovered strongly in Q3/2026, and German import data also show Vietnamese products strengthening their position amid competition among suppliers.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Seafood exports are holding double-digit growth, but the opportunities are not spread evenly across product groups and markets. As businesses draw up their plans for 2027, Vietnam Seafood Summit 2026 (VSS2026) offers a chance to look ahead together: what to sell, where to sell it, and how to prepare for growth in the coming years.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) With less than two weeks to go, the Vietnam Seafood Summit 2026 (VSS 2026) will officially take place in Can Tho. Under the theme “Seafood Market Outlook 2027–2029 – Opportunities and Potential for Double-Digit Export Growth,” the Summit is organized by VASEP at a time when seafood businesses are facing rapid market shifts, changing buyer demand, trade policy changes and growing competitive pressure all at once.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) On October 28, 2026, the China Fisheries & Seafood Expo opened in Qingdao, China. The expo takes place over three days from October 28 to 30, 2026. This is a prestigious specialized seafood exhibition organized annually by Sea Fare Exposition Inc.
(vasep.com.vn) In the first nine months of 2026, Vietnam’s tilapia exports to the CPTPP bloc reached $7 million, marking a 51% year-on-year increase. The bloc rstands as the fourth-largest market for Vietnamese tilapia, trailing Brazil, the US, and Saudi Arabia.
(vasep.com.vn) VASEP has officially announced the program for Vietnam Seafood Summit 2026 (VSS 2026), featuring five in-depth sessions covering industry outlooks, trade barriers, buyer demand, the domestic market, and solutions to improve productivity and reduce costs across the seafood value chain.
(vasep.com.vn) Vietnam’s shrimp exports reached US$3.7 billion in the first nine months of 2026, up 11% year on year. Although growth has been supported by China and several markets within the CPTPP, momentum is slowing as exports to the United States and the European Union decline. Tariff pressures, international competition, and raw material challenges are creating significant hurdles for exporters in the final months of the year.
(vasep.com.vn) Markets are changing faster, buyer requirements are becoming more demanding, and trade barriers are growing increasingly complex. In this environment, seafood businesses need more than an understanding of current market conditions. They need a longer-term perspective to answer a critical question: Where will growth opportunities come from in 2027–2029, and what should businesses do now to prepare? This is one of the key reasons why VASEP is organizing Vietnam Seafood Summit 2026.
(vasep.com.vn) In the first eight months of 2026, Vietnam’s pangasius exports to the Middle East reached US$113 million, up 7% year on year from the same period in 2025. Growth has become more pronounced in recent months. In August alone, exports to the region totaled US$20 million, an increase of 24%. This indicates that demand for Vietnamese pangasius in the Middle East is gradually recovering after a slowdown in March, although the pace of recovery varies across markets.
(vasep.com.vn) China’s shrimp imports continued to grow strongly in 2026, while Vietnam’s shrimp exports to the market also recorded notable growth. However, behind these positive figures lie two distinct trends: Chinese consumption is growing more slowly than imports, and lobster accounts for a substantial share of Vietnam’s shrimp exports to China, making its product mix significantly different from those of Ecuador and India. Exporters therefore need to assess each segment carefully to understand the opportunities and risks.
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