Imported salted fish flooding Sukabumi market

Imported salted fish products have flooded the traditional markets and attracted consumers in Sukabumi, West Java, because of its low pricing.

“Imported fish products, including from Thailand and Taiwan, dominated salted fish stalls in Sukabumi,” trader Dani Supriyadi said at Cisaat Market, Sukabumi, on Monday.

According to him, the imported salted fish products remained the main attraction at the local traditional market due to scarcity of local fish supplies.

Traders opted for imported products to meet the market demand for salted fish, and stocked them. Another reason for the popularity of the imported salted fish is its low price, compared to the fish produced domestically.

Sadly, domestic salted fish has been difficult to find lately, because of its limited stock.

The quality of local salted fish products in the country is better than the imported stock, yet it cannot last long because it is processed traditionally. It does not use chemical preservatives.

“The local salted fish products should dominate the domestic markets because Indonesia has access to vast water resources in the form of Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean, in comparison to Taiwan and Thailand which have rare Sepat fish species and anchovies,” he added.

Meanwhile, Chairman of Palabuhan Ratu Community Collectors and Fish Processing Palabuhanratu, Telly Supriatna said too little catch of anchovies ios now found in Indonesia due to inappropriate weather. It is believed that since December 2015 and till April this year, the supply will continue to decrease.

When entering the rainy season, salted fish processing declines due to the fact that drying process takes a long time. As a result, next April, fish production will decrease and supply will fall as well.

“Salted fish processing in Indonesia is mostly done traditionally, relying on nature for its drying process. Compared to imported products that are already using modern tools, our products become less competitive in the market,” he said.