Royal Greenland reports growth despite reduced volume of prawns

Seafood producer, Royal Greenland, has reported a strong end to 2014, despite the global reduction in availability of cold water prawns (CWP).

In spite of the Total Allowable Catch (TAC) quota of CWP plummeting in 2014, the business has maintained strong sales, achieving £36m across all seafood categories in the UK.

As the Greenlandic TAC quota has dropped by a further 14% for 2015, cold water prawn prices are expected to remain high due to the continuing shortage of raw materials. The reduction means that just 73,000 metric tonnes of cold water prawns can be caught in the area this year.

Randall Jennings, managing director for Royal Greenland in the UK said: "Cooked and peeled cold water prawns are no longer a commodity product and should be treated as a luxury item, much like they have been in the past. Not so long ago, we were only able to catch 60,000 tonnes and prices were reflective of the more limited availability. The UK represents the biggest market for CWP, but we should expect to see fewer cold water prawn dishes and products on menus and shelves as the year progresses."

While the reduced availability of cold water prawns has impacted Royal Greenland from a product focus perspective, the business is continuing on its growth trajectory due to changes in the availability of other species. The company gained access to larger volumes of Greenland halibut and the Greenlandic cod quota was increased offshore as well as inshore, with 52,939 tonnes purchased for Royal Greenland's factories in Greenland in 2013-14, a rise of 13% over the year before.

Royal Greenland's annual report states that in the financial year 2013- 2014, Europe remained the business's most important market, with c. £427m net turnover achieved.