갑각류 insights

Crab stick remains dominant Jiwen's core product, imitation crab stick, remains the main sales driver, accounting for approximately 70%. However, compared to the previous share of over 90%, its proportion has decreased. By-product sales rise rapidly Sales of by-products have tripled year-on-year in the first half of this year, with the overall share rising to 30%. Popular by-products include: Chikuwa (bamboo rolls) Oden sets Itatsuki kamaboko Expansion of retail and e-commerce channels Jiwen products are now available in Ole, a high-end imported food chain supermarket in China, which has 120 stores. In addition, the company has set up official flagship stores on major Chinese e-commerce platforms (including the five major platforms including Taobao) this year, further expanding its sales channels. Reliance on Thai product supply Since August 2023, China has suspended the import of Japanese aquatic products, and Jiwen's products in the Chinese market are entirely dependent on its Thai factory. Although the Chinese government announced plans to lift the ban in July 2025, the relevant import procedures are expected to resume at the earliest in 2026.

In recent years, Hunchun has become the main hub for Russia to supply crab products to the Chinese market. Hunchun traders report that Kamchatka crabs are shipped to China at a price of over 320 yuan per kilogram. On average, up to 150 crabs are sold daily through online and offline sales. Last year, approximately 1.5 million Kamchatka crabs entered the Chinese market through Hunchun Port, valued at 3.31 billion yuan, accounting for over 80% of the total Chinese market. This figure is likely to continue to increase significantly this year. In 2024, China purchased a total of over 1.14 billion U.S. dollars worth of fresh/frozen crabs from Russia, a 16.7% increase from the previous year, with a total supply of 41,600 tons. Russia remains China's second-largest supplier of crabs and other crustaceans, second only to Ecuador, but with the continuous improvement of logistics and new warehousing capabilities along the Russia-China border, Russia has the opportunity to make greater progress in this area.

Last autumn's sharp decline in the catch of crab in the West Sea is expected to increase by up to 140% in this year's autumn fishing season. The National Institute of Fisheries Science analyzed that changes in the marine environment, such as the expansion of cold water currents, have positively affected the recovery of the crab fishing grounds. The institute projected that the crab catch in the West Sea during this autumn fishing season (August 21 to November 30) will increase by about 104 to 140% compared to last autumn (7,885 tons). This is within the range of 71 to 95% of the average over the past five years (11,539 tons). The crab catch in the West Sea during the autumn fishing season was 8,615 tons in 2015, 6,165 tons in 2018, 11,697 tons in 2021, and 17,100 tons in 2023.