Challenges and prospects of the fishing export potential development in the Far East

Abstract

According to the objectives of the federal project "Export of Agribusiness Products", the Far Eastern Federal District (FEFD) should increase the export of aquatic biological resources (ABR), including fish, to USD 1,338 million by 2024. Fish and fish products are among the top three agricultural exports in Russia (along with grains and oilseeds). The Far East is the main region in the Russian Federation for the capture of fish and other ABR. The article deals with the indicators of production and export of ABR of the fisheries industry of the FEFD, which includes also the Kamchatka Territory, Primorsky Territory, and the Sakhalin region. The authors consider problems that hinder its effective development and analyze directions and measures to solve existing problems. The main negative factors are associated with the infrastructural shortcomings, such as physical and moral deterioration of the fishing fleet, the lack of modern processing facilities, which do not allow producing fish products with high added value in the proper amount. To develop the concerned industry sector and resolve the issues constraining the growth of production and export capacity in the entities of the FEFD, the Russian government has developed special programs to promote investment activity, the construction of the necessary fishing fleet and infrastructure facilities, and modernization of existing facilities.