Philippines to import 60,000 tonnes of fish to cover shortage

MANILA (Philippine Daily Inquirer/Asia News Network): The government will import 60,000 metric tonnes of small pelagic fishes such as round scad (galunggong) and mackerel to cover part of an expected shortage in local supply in the first quarter of 2022, Agriculture Secretary William Dar said at the Laging Handa public briefing on Tuesday (Jan 18).

Pelagic fish, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, got their name from the area that they inhabit called the pelagic zone. It is the largest marine habitat on earth accounting for about a fourth of the total world fisheries catch annually.