Seafood New Zealand is studying the news coming out of the United States about the changes to the tariff landscape, and what that will mean for us. We will provide a fuller analysis early next week.
Based on Thursday's announcement, New Zealand will be subjected to a 10% tariff on all exports to the United States. The 10% tariff is additional to any tariff already in place - fortunately for seafood there is no existing tariff. This is the minimum tariff applied under the new regime.
We are pleased that our seafood exporters, who bring in $2.2 billion in annual earnings, are highly diversified in terms of markets. In fact we exported to a total of 107 countries in 2024. That included 18,452 metric tonne of seafood (across all categories) to the US - which represents 0.6 % of all US imports by volume. You can see our top ten export markets in the table below:
New Zealand Seafood Exports for 2024
Top 10 Markets by Value ($NZ)
| Market | Export Value |
| China | $719 M |
| United States of America | $383 M |
| European Union (collective countries) | $334 M |
| Australia | $253 M |
| Japan | $97 M |
| Cameroon | $34 M |
| South Africa | $30 M |
| Hong Kong | $29 M |
| Thailand | $28 M |
| Canada | $26 M |
We also operate under the awareness that we live in a rapidly changing world and that the measures announced on Thursday are potentially subject to further change. Stay tuned.
The pre-flight checks you never knew about
When you get on a plane, you know the crew have done a serious number of pre-flight checks. But if you've never been on a fishing boat, you might have no idea how comprehensive and complex our pre-sail processes are these days.
Avionics - check. Fuel levels - check. Flight path - check.
We've all walked onto a plane (the domestic ones, anyway) and been able to see the activity in the cockpit before we sit down. It's a flurry of clipboards and lists and the back and forth of the crew going over and over the requisite safety and process checks that ensure a safe flight.
What most people will never see is that in 2025, these pre-departure checks also happen on New Zealand fishing vessels. But unlike on planes, they are not just about the safety of the people inside. Naturally, there are the safety checks for the humans, working through the fishing plan and the crew briefings. But add to that the environmental performance and operational procedure checks that our fishers regularly perform.
Our skippers need to know the latest information on protected species and other fisheries management requirements. For example, what are the latest procedures with regard to interactions of marine mammals with fishing vessels in a certain area, or if a new restriction to fishing in a certain area has been recently issued.
Traditionally this was done with paperwork and frankly the load could be overwhelming.
With that load in mind, two years ago, the then Deepwater Group (now the Deepwater Council of Seafood New Zealand) started work on the InfoPortal. This is a digital resource in the wheelhouse (that's the bridge to most people), that gives the skipper access to real-time information on protected species and fisheries management.
The Deepwater InfoPortal includes pre-departure checklists and species identification guides for seabirds, sharks and marine mammals and benthic species (things that live on the ocean floor). This portal exists because of the work of the Seafood New Zealand deepwater team and the great skippers and vessel managers across the commercial fleet, who helped design and implement it. It is an independent system which is accessed via software sitting on a PC in the wheelhouse.
Skippers who are using it (and the whole of the core deepwater trawl fleet now has it) say they like it. They say it is particularly useful for new crew or vessel managers who might not know the operating procedures very well. It's not just about pre-departure checks, it's a resource right there in the wheelhouse for all sorts of processes that's accessible anywhere at sea, even without internet access.
Moreover, the Deepwater Council is already looking into upgrading the platform. They plan to add the ability to send data and information back through the portal and, eventually, to provide real-time updates on the location and abundance of marine mammals, birds, and other wildlife. This will help skippers avoid these areas.
While the portal is currently just a deepwater initiative, inshore skippers are also doing similar pre-departure checks before heading out. These checks include ensuring that appropriate mitigation measures are onboard and in working order, cleaning onboard cameras, familiarising themselves with the area they'll be fishing in (including relevant rules and protected species), and having the protected species risk management plan on hand to help avoid accidental captures and outline the necessary response should a capture occurs.
When you get on a plane, you'll know the pilots have been thinking about birds at some point in their checks and operational procedures. Now, when you eat a piece of New Zealand caught seafood, you can form a mental picture of a skipper thinking about birds, marine mammals, benthic species and more, and working continuously to avoid them.
