Hi sue59-ga,
First allow me to directly answer your Question by listing the prices
for the various wholesale trout products in different world regions,
and then I’ll provide the background information that I used to obtain
the price quotes, as well as some relevant industry data that may aid
you in finding more resources.
UNITED STATES
For the United States, I obtained the following representative
information, from the Stonington Sea Products company in Maine:
Rainbow trout filets are sold to restaurants and stores for
US$5.95/lb.
“Hot smoked” rainbow trout is sold to restaurants and stores for
US$9.75/lb. In one of your Clarifications you said you wanted the
figures in US$/kg (“I need to know the wholesale price of smoked trout
fillets ( e.g.
$xusd/kg…”), so I have converted the above figures (and those
throughout this Answer) to USD/kg. (Note: all actual source prices
with their published, unconverted units can be seen from the links I
will provide).
Filets: US$13.22/kg.
“Hot smoked”: US$21.67/kg.
This information was obtained by myself personally by talking to a
Stonington Sea Products representative at 1- 888-402-2729. I asked the
rep. where they obtain their rainbow trout, and she told me they come
from a farm in North Carolina, but wouldn’t elaborate. (However, here
is a link to a trout aquaculture farm page listing the addresses and
contact information for several trout farms in western North Carolina:
[http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/copubs/ag/aqua/trout/037/ ]).
Here’s a link to Stonington Sea Products’ wholesale page (they do
on-line retail also):
[ http://www.stoningtonseafood.com/ordering_wholesale.htm ].
Here’s a link to their “Ordering” page:
[ http://www.stoningtonseafood.com/ordering_home.htm ].
Here’s a link to their home page:
[ http://www.stoningtonseafood.com/index.html ],
and a link to their "Trout page" (which lists their retail on-line
“Roasted Smoked Trout” at US$7.95/6 oz, which is US$21.2/lb (or
US$47.1/kg):
[http://www.stoningtonseafood.com/ourproducts_roastedsmokedtrout.htm
].
You may find the following quote of interest (from Sunburst Trout,
North Carolina, [http://www.sunbursttrout.com/our_story.html ]:
“Additionally, there is a growing network of mountain trout farms for
sourcing their young but not yet full grown, fatted, and filled out.
And finally, with the emergence of “overnight delivery” and cold
packaging, their marketing has become more individualized and more
widespread.”
At any rate, Stonington is one of the few wholesalers who would still
give me information after they found out that I personally was not
representing an established seafood vendor. [When inquiring to
wholesalers, I said after being asked that I was an entrepreneur doing
a feasibility study on opening a new seafood restaurant and was
collecting market information for my loan proposal. With the more
extensive contact list I’ll provide below, you’ll be able to get a lot
more up-to-the-minute quotes besides the one I provided here if you
can say you’re representing an active and well-known seafood industry
buyer].
As an aside, none of the people I spoke (or e-mailed) with, including
the Stonington representative, knew of any online sources for current
trout market information.
Also, I don’t think Stonington is the cheapest, because here on
AlwaysFreshFish.com: [http://www.alwaysfreshfish.com/wholesale.html ],
they sell rainbow trout filets for US$4.95 per pound [US$11/kg] (plus
shipping), and offer “wholesale” prices on any order of more than 20
pounds (and that includes combined fish orders, i.e. 10 pounds trout,
10 pounds salmon).
Bear in mind that the market will vary with supply, which mainly
consists of the farms. Severe cold spells can increase costs for the
farmers because they have to pay for more heating the water (which
makes the trout grow faster), and pass those costs on to their
customers.
In case you are interested in how the price has acted over time, here
are Rainbow Trout prices for Washington D.C. and Maryland for July,
1996, from the Maryland Aquaculture Office
[http://aquanic.org/publicat/state/md/md71296.htm ]:
1996: Boned, size class 8-10 oz, Rainbows were sold for an average
price of US$2.7/lb (that’s US$6/kg), with a volume of 1300 lbs, in
D.C.
1996: The same category of trout sold for US$2.82/lb (that’s
US$6.27/kg), except with a volume of 6820 lbs, in Maryland.
Also in Maryland in 1996, rainbow trout filets sold for US$4.32/lb
(that’s US$9.60/kg), for size class 6-8 oz, for a volume of 1040
pounds.
Boned rainbow trout in Maryland, 1996 sold for US$2.82/lb (that’s
US$6.27/kg), 8-12 oz size class, 6820 lb volume.
Going to the actual page
[http://aquanic.org/publicat/state/md/md71296.htm ], you can also get
quotes for “dressed” rainbow trout from 1996, as well as quotes
similar to those I listed above, but for different size classes and
volumes.
EUROPE
Now, on to Europe, where Scotland is the largest supplier of Rainbow
Trout:
I did manage to locate a European wholesaler (farm) who sells filleted
and smoked Rainbow Trout. They are the Drummond Trout Farm & Fishery,
in Comrie, Perthshire, Scotland. Here are some brief notes on their
production and sources (from their website,
[http://www.drummondtroutfarm.co.uk/trout.html ]):
“Production
Here at Comrie we produce about 80 tonnes [these are metric tonnes,
note: 1 metric tonne = 1.10231131 ton, so 80 metric tones = 88.1 tons]
of Rainbow Trout each year. We do not hatch fish here but bring them
to the farm from specialist suppliers [fish “hatcheries”] round the
country.
Most of the fish here at Comrie leave the farm alive to supply fish
for re-stocking angling waters, although some go direct to hotels and
restaurants for consumption direct on the table.”
So, this Scottish outfit buys trout fry from hatcheries, and rears
them to market size in outdoor ponds. Then, they sell them at
primarily the wholesale level, (although they do some retail at their
own farm and online) online, at farmer’s markets and via direct
mail-order.
Here are their prices:
For “freshly gutted Rainbow Trout” (which are whole trout, but with
innards removed—skin on), they charge 6.5 British Pounds (GBP) per kg
(minimum order of 5 kg [ 5 kg = 11 lbs], no maximum, including U.K.
shipping). Currently, 1 GBP = 1.59 US$ (from Yahoo! Finance, Currency
Conversion:
[ http://finance.yahoo.com/m5?a=1&s=GBP&t=USD ].
This converts to US$10.34/kg (or, US$4.70/lb).
{For your convenience, should you need it, here is a link to DHL
corporation’s pounds-kilograms conversion calculator page:
[ http://www.dhl-usa.com/lbs-2-kilo ] (note: 1 kg = 2.2 lbs and 1 lb
= 0.45 kg)}.
For “Boneless rainbow trout fillets”, their price is 9.95 GBP/kg
(minimum order 5 kg, no maximum, including U.K. shipping), which
converts to US$15.82/kg (or US$ 7.19/lb). Note that they state on
their website that their trout are somewhat more expensive than those
grown in the south of Scotland, due to the fact that their water is
colder and so they take significantly longer to reach market size
(meaning it’s more expensive for them to feed and maintain
environments/equipment for, but better and healthier for the trout).
However, Drummond maintains that because of their high quality,
natural water and slower rearing process, their trout are of superior
quality.
Below are the Drummond smoked Rainbow Trout prices, but first, here
is a description of the smoked product from their website:
“Smoked Rainbow Trout - Reared in the cool, clear waters of the river
Earn, our trout are then expertly smoked by Inverawe smokehouse in
Argyll [i.e., this is a “value-added” trout product]. The cold smoked
trout is considered by many to offer a finer flavour and texture than
smoked salmon and is our most popular product. Try it!” [I think I'm
going to, after this!]
Here’s the link: [http://www.drummondtroutfarm.co.uk/Smoked_Rainbow_Trout.htm
].
For their “Cold smoked trout sliced side,” they offer a sliding scale
based on quantity purchased (favoring larger quantities, of course).
For 450-550 g [yes, grams], they charge 13.5 GBP. This converts to
US$21.5/0.5 kg, or US$43.0/kg (or US$19.5/lb). For 650-750 g, it’s
17.5 GBP (or US$27.83/0.7 kg). This converts to US$39.8/kg (or
US$18/lb).
In addition to the smoked and filleted trout products listed above,
Drummond also offers some additional trout products (which I’ve seen
offered elsewhere, too) which may be of interest to you from a
pricing/marketing standpoint:
They offer “Roast whole smoked trout (pair)” (see the smoked trout
order page: [http://www.drummondtroutfarm.co.uk/Smoked_Rainbow_Trout.htm
]), at 7.5 GBP (for a pair). This converts to US$11.93 per “pair.”
Another smoked Rainbow Trout product they offer is that of, “Roast
smoked trout fillets (pair),” which is also 7.5 GBP (per pair), or
US$11.93/pair.
From the “Fresh Rainbow Trout” order page
[http://www.drummondtroutfarm.co.uk/Fresh_Rainbow_Trout.htm ]:
“Rainbow trout steaks by the kg (minimum order 5 kg)” are 7.5 GBP.
This converts to US$11.93/kg (or US$5.42/lb).
Here’s a link to their home page:
[http://www.drummondtroutfarm.co.uk/index.html ],
and a link to their online store main page:
[http://www.drummondtroutfarm.co.uk/idx1.htm ].
Here’s a link to their online store “Fresh Rainbow Trout” page:
[http://www.drummondtroutfarm.co.uk/Fresh_Rainbow_Trout.htm ],
and here’s a link to their “Smoked Rainbow Trout” page:
[http://www.drummondtroutfarm.co.uk/Smoked_Rainbow_Trout.htm ].
Here is the Drummond Trout Farm & Fishery contact information:
Drummond Trout Farm and Fishery
Comrie, Perthshire, PH6 2LD Scotland
Tel: 01764 670500
Fax 01764 679480
Mobile 07770 598687
enquiries@drummondtroutfarm.co.uk
ASIA
At this point, let’s turn to a representative Asian market. I’m going
to give price data for Japan, since you indicated in a Clarification
that that would be satisfactory, although I’ll treat China in a
qualitative manner as well.
From the Alaska Department of Community and Economic Development,
Division of International Trade and Market Development, the following
are 2002 prices for frozen trout in the Tokyo, Japan,Tsukiji Auctioned
Wholesale Fish Market (Here is the link to the .pdf file:
http://www.dced.state.ak.us/trade/archived_fish_prices/2003/jpriceb031303.pdf
Note that the trout sold in these Tokyo quotes do not actually come
from Japan, but from Canada, Norway and Chile. In the .pdf document,
the prices are presented as a chart for different size classes from
each origin, and highs and lows (in yen/kg and USD/kg) are given.
Below I list a representative sample quote:
For “Canada, net troller [frozen whole trout]”, 2-3 & 3-5 lb class [
4.44-6.67 & 6.67-11.1 kg], the price high was US$1.69/kg and the price
low was US$1.53/kg. In yen/kg, the prices were 200 and 180, high and
low prices, respectively. Here’s a link to the Yahoo! Finance Currency
Conversion page for today’s yen-USD exchange rate:
[http://finance.yahoo.com/m5?a=1&s=JPY&t=USD&c=0 ].(1 Japanese Yen
currently = 0.01 USD).
The prices for frozen trout sold in Tokyo but originating in Norway
are considerably higher:
“Norway 1.8-2.7 lb [ 4-6 kg]” size class: The price was consistent at
US$4.24/kg.
Frozen trout sold in Tokyo but originating in Chile were the highest
priced, with 4-6 lb [ 8.89-13.33 kg] size class fish selling for a
high of US$4.92/kg, and a low of US$4.75/kg.
Contact information for the Alaska government office which compiled
the statistics is available at the top of the .pdf document
[http://www.dced.state.ak.us/trade/archived_fish_prices/2003/jpriceb031303.pdf].
Now for a brief look at China:
The following link is to some extensive (from 1993 on) information on
the trout industry in China, from the FAO (Food and Agriculture
Organization of the United Nations):
This link takes you directly to Chapter 2.2 “The Trout Market in China
(near bottom of page)--
[http://www.fao.org/docrep/field/003/AB903E/AB903E02.htm#ch2. ]
From this page, you can navigate throughout the report by clicking the
provided blue arrow buttons at the top and bottom of each page.
Chapter 3, Section 1 (3.1) is also highly relevant (although no price
data is discussed explicitly, only in terms of percentages over time)
“3.1. IDENTIFICATION OF PROBLEMS IN CHINESE TROUT CULTURE”:
[http://www.fao.org/docrep/field/003/AB903E/AB903E03.htm ].
And here’s a link to the report’s Table of Contents:
[http://www.fao.org/docrep/field/003/AB903E/AB903E00.htm#TOC ].
MIDDLE EAST
Here is some additional international trout market information, for
the Middle East:
This was not specifically requested, but you mentioned in a
Clarification that Turkey prices would be of interest to you to gauge
the Middle East. I happened to get an e-mail response as a result of
my inquiries from a Pakistani trout farm, so I’ll include that
information for you here (pasted directly from the e-mail I received
after inquiring):
“Thank you for ur reply.
Please note the prices for our product CIF,Europe,Japan 12 US$/kg [=
US$5.46 /lb] (by air).
If u have any other question please feel free to contact us.
Regards,
Malik/Director”
Peesa Enterprises ___________________________________________________________________
Registered Office: 26/289-Drigh Road,Cantt.Area,Karachi-75350,Pakistan
Central Office: 3/2-E,St.11,Sector G-7/2,Islamabad,Pakistan
Tel: +92 21 457 5492 Fax: +92 21 457 5494 Mobile: +92 333 210 1287
E-mail: peesaent@yahoo.com"
Here is the entire text of the company information they sent me:
“The Trout Paradise
SUBJECT: EXPORT OF FRESH WATER LAKE TROUT FISH
Dear Sirs,
Considering your valuable time, we briefly introduce ourselves as
one of the leading exporters of Fresh Water Lake Trout Fish from
Pakistan. Our Trout Hatcheries and Farms are situated in the Northern
Areas of Pakistan such as Kalam, Kaghan, Shinu, etc., where
temperature remains between -10 C' to 15 C' throughout the year and
these sites are 8500 - 9500 feet high from sea level. We are one of
few Governmental licensees who own the Trout Farms at these places, as
well as, we are also registered at the Ministry of Health, due to our
strict hygienic packing and handling standards.
The company founded in the early nineties. We have a staff of
trained professionals whose skills are tailored to suit business
requirements. They have in depth knowledge of the profession. We are
pleased to record that our expectation of highly product quality has
been more than satisfied and this is a result of extensive research
and development by our export department. We carry out production
checks at regular intervals. Our top quality, excellent packing and
stringent health and hygiene control has built up an excellent
reputation in this field over the years. We are specialist in export
of different kinds of Trout to Singapore, Malaysia and Kuwait, as well
as, supplying to various 4-star and 5-star hotels here in Pakistan.
INSIDE OUR TROUT FARMS
Trout, any of many species of fish of the family Salmonidae.It is
found in North America, Canada, Denmark, Norway and some places of
Spain & Ireland. In Asia; Japan and Northern Areas of Pakistan are
well known for Trout Farms due to their low temperature and other
atmospheric conditions, which are conducive for the growth of this
species. Our Trout Farms called”The Trout Paradise" subsist of four
kinds; Gray, Brown, Black spotted and Colored sometime [note: I am
fairly sure that “spotted and colored” is another way of saying
“Rainbow” although I am not 100% sure], varying in size according to
the extent of water, age, and the amount of food they procure.
Normally, 1 lb. to 3 lbs. in weight. It is considered to be the most
sapid and delicious kind of fish.
We do warmly welcome you to take advantage of such importation for
your own account, as well as the accounts of your associates and
clients. Where it concerns the later, we’l pay you commission on the
basis of each and every individual transaction successfully completed.
We can assure you of our best offer/quotation, high quality,
reasonable and acceptable prices, correct specifications and so forth,
extending the best services to your utmost satisfaction.
We thank you for your attention to this matter.
Certainly, We look forward to hearing from
you in the future.
With the best regards, we remain
Very sincerely yours'
Peesa Enterprises
Malik/Director"
And some additional info for Turkey:
From a Purdue University “Trout and Salmon Discussion” message board
[http://ag.ansc.purdue.edu/discuss/_salmonid/00000273.htm ]:
“Re: rainbow trout market pricesFrom: Dr. Muhammed ATAMANALP
Date: 17 Oct 2002
Time: 04:11:57
Comments
In turkey, 1 kg rainbow trout (2,2 lb) = 3 $,
sincerely yours”
Dr. Muhammed ATAMANALP is saying that 1kg of rainbow trout sells for
US$3.
FURTHER INFORMATION
At this point, I’ll provide you with some background and general
information and links to further resources on the global trout market.
First of all, “ Rainbow Trout” is the common name for the fish known
scientifically as Oncorhynchus mykiss. Rainbows belong to the
“Salmonid” family of fishes, (even though they are not salmon).
The following is a very good general article, sent to me by Chris
Fanning of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
in response to my inquiries about trout markets [e-mail:
Chris.Fanning@noaa.gov ]:
http://www.rirdc.gov.au/pub/handbook/trout.html
Here’s an excerpt:
“Markets and marketing issues
World salmonid aquaculture production, including land-based and sea
production of trout and salmon, is about 717,000 t and worth
approximately US$3.1 billion/year. Rainbow trout (mostly land-based)
makes up about 43% by volume (t) and 34% by value of total world
salmonid production (1993 estimates). The major trout-producing
countries are the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, France, Germany,
Chile, Denmark and the USA. Land-based trout farming production in
countries such as Spain and Italy is currently increasing at about 10%
per annum.”
Next is a link to a wild trout conservation article, which details
state of natural trout streams in the United Kingdom:
[http://www.wild-trout.co.uk/conserve.htm ].
Google search strategy:
Keywords:
“trout prices”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=trout+prices&btnG=Google+Search
,
“trout markets”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=trout+markets&btnG=Google+Search
,
“global trout markets”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=global+trout+markets&btnG=Google+Search
,
“rainbow trout aquaculture”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=rainbow+trout+aquaculture&btnG=Google+Search
,
“rainbow trout rearing”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=rainbow+trout+rearing
,
“rainbow trout prices”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=rainbow+trout+prices&btnG=Google+Search
,
“Oncorhynchus mykiss”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=Oncorhynchus+mykiss&spell=1
“:
“Oncorhynchus mykiss aquaculture”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=Oncorhynchus+mykiss+aquaculture&btnG=Google+Search
,
“rainbow trout global trade”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=rainbow+trout+global+trade&btnG=Google+Search
,
“seafood market data”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=seafood+market+data&btnG=Google+Search
,
“seafood market research”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=seafood+market+research&btnG=Google+Search
,
“UK trout prices”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=UK+trout+prices
,
“Asian trout prices”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=Asian+trout+prices&btnG=Google+Search
,
“Tokyo trout prices”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=Tokyo+trout+prices&btnG=Google+Search
,
“trout wholesale markets”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=trout+wholesale+markets
,
“rainbow trout buyers”:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=rainbow+trout+buyers
,
“rainbow trout logistics:”
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=rainbow+trout+logistics&btnG=Google+Search
,
************“rainbow trout seafood market prices”***********:
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&safe=off&q=rainbow+trout+seafood+market+prices&btnG=Google+Search
Note: this last link returns a very high number of relevant links.
Clicking the “similar links” gray colored link next to each search
result main link will bring you to more content similar to that of the
last link.
Sue,
Please don’t hesitate to ask for Clarification if anything I’ve
written about here is unclear, or if you feel that I’ve left something
out that’s important to you. Good luck in continuing your inquiries!
Sincerely,
omniscientbeing-ga
Google Answers Researcher |
