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Updated April 1st, 2020 at 10:26 IST

Spain's fishing industry in decline over virus fears

With every restaurant and bar and most hotels in Spain closed, the demand for fish has fallen so much that some fishermen have decided to stay in port.

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With every restaurant and bar and most hotels in Spain closed, the demand for fish has fallen so much that some fishermen have decided to stay in port.

Since Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez declared the state of emergency more than two weeks ago many things have changed for some Spanish industries.

Fish and seafood prices have plummeted since the start of the Coronavirus crisis.

Most of the fish and seafood in Spain is 50% cheaper.

Hake used to cost at 6 to 7 Euros per kilo, while now it is 3.5 Euros. The Almerian red shrimp used to be sold above 65 Euros per kilo, while now it cost less than 35 Euros.

Fishing is included in the primary sector and is excluded from Spanish government aid or financial help.

Javier Garat, General Secretary of Spain National Federation of Fishermen's Guilds and the Spanish Confederation of Fisheries (Cepesca), said there were already cases of fishermen infected with COVID-19 which hah forced shipowners to moor their boats in port to avoid infection and to respect quarantine.

"Secondly, those (shipowners and fishermen) who want to continue their activity encounter difficulties, because there are not enough masks or enough protective gear, or they have found problems with free movement of people and goods, especially when ships have to unload in third countries." he said, adding that some crews did not want to go fishing simly because it was not profitable.

According to Cepesca, about 70% of the fleet in the Mediterranean sea is in port.

The Spanish fishing sector employs more than 30,000 fishermen and shipowners  in 8,900 fishing vessels.

Spain has been on lockdown since March 14th, and Spanish Government has decided to extend the state of emergency until 11 April.

The new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people.

For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death.

 

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Published April 1st, 2020 at 10:26 IST

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