New Delhi: India’s seafood exports reached an all-time high of ₹72,325.82 crore (US$ 8.28 billion) in FY 2025–26, with total shipment volumes touching 19.32 lakh metric tonnes, according to provisional data released by the Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA).
The strong performance in seafood exports highlights India’s growing global footprint in the marine products sector.
A key driver behind the surge in seafood exports was frozen shrimp, which continued to dominate the export basket. Frozen shrimp contributed ₹47,973.13 crore (US$ 5.51 billion), accounting for more than two-thirds of India’s total marine export earnings.
Shipments of shrimp recorded a growth of 4.6% in volume and 6.35% in value.
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The United States remained the largest destination for India’s seafood exports, with imports valued at US$ 2.32 billion. However, exports to the US witnessed a decline of 19.8% in volume and 14.5% in value.
This dip in seafood exports to the US is primarily attributed to the impact of reciprocal tariffs, affecting trade dynamics in one of India’s key markets.
Despite the decline in the US market, India’s seafood exports demonstrated resilience through strong growth in alternative regions. Exports to China, the second-largest market, increased by 22.7% in value and 20.1% in volume.
The European Union also recorded robust growth, with shipments rising by 37.9% in value and 35.2% in volume, further strengthening India’s seafood exports diversification strategy.
Southeast Asia emerged as another high-growth region for India’s seafood exports, registering a 36.1% increase in value and a 28.2% rise in volume. Exports to Japan also grew by 6.55% in value.
However, shipments to West Asia witnessed a marginal decline of 0.55%, largely due to regional turmoil towards the end of the financial year, slightly impacting overall seafood exports performance.
Several individual markets posted strong double-digit growth, indicating a strategic shift towards diversification in India’s exports amid evolving global trade challenges and headwinds in traditional markets.
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Seafood Exports: Positive Momentum Across Multiple Categories
On the product front, India’s seafood exports saw positive momentum across multiple categories, including frozen fish, squid, cuttlefish, dried products, and live seafood.
In addition, exports of surimi, fishmeal, and fish oil reported improved performance, contributing to the broad-based growth in exports. However, exports of chilled products recorded a decline during the same period.
From a logistics perspective, five major ports – Vizag, JNPT, Kochi, Kolkata, and Chennai – accounted for nearly 64% of the total export value.
Their continued dominance underscores their critical role in supporting India’s exports supply chain and enabling efficient global distribution.
