Seafood consumption has risen substantially over the long term, but the pattern differs by region, income, species and supply source. Global aquatic animal food availability reached 171 million tonnes in 2023, while U.S. adults and children reported different seafood-eating frequencies in August 2021–August 2023. The figures below distinguish historical measurements from estimates and projections.
Contents
- Global seafood consumption at a glance
- Seafood consumption by region and income
- Species mix and farmed-versus-wild consumption
- U.S. seafood consumption per person and import reliance
- U.S. seafood eating frequency and demographics
- Popular seafood types in the United States
- EU household seafood consumption and market measures
Global seafood consumption at a glance
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reported global per-capita availability of aquatic animal food at 21.1 kilograms in 2023. Its estimate for 2024 was 21.3 kilograms per person. These are availability measures rather than direct measurements of what people swallowed or retained after waste. (SOFIA 2026: Global fisheries and aquaculture production reaches new highs)
Global availability reached 171 million tonnes in 2023. A separate FAO report measured global apparent consumption at 162.5 million tonnes in 2021, with per-capita apparent consumption at 20.6 kilograms. The different years and measures should not be treated as a single time-series observation. (FAO Report: Global fisheries and aquaculture production reaches a new record high)
Long-run change is pronounced: global per-capita aquatic animal food consumption rose from 9.1 kilograms in 1961 to 20.7 kilograms in 2022. In 2022, aquatic animal foods supplied 15% of animal protein and 6% of total protein worldwide. FAO projected apparent consumption to rise 12% to an average of 21.3 kilograms per person by 2032. That 2032 figure is a projection, not an observed result. (FAO Report)
| Measure | Result | Period or status |
|---|---|---|
| Global availability | 171 million tonnes | 2023 |
| Global per-capita availability | 21.1 kg | 2023 |
| Global per-capita availability | 21.3 kg | 2024 estimate |
| Global apparent consumption | 162.5 million tonnes | 2021 |
| Projected per-capita apparent consumption | 21.3 kg | 2032 projection |
FAO apparent consumption and availability generally use food available for human consumption, often in live-weight equivalent. They are not direct plate-waste-adjusted intake measurements.
Seafood consumption by region and income
Regional totals show Asia’s scale. In 2019, apparent aquatic food consumption reached 113.1 million tonnes in Asia, compared with 15.8 million tonnes in Europe, 14.8 million tonnes in the Americas, 13.1 million tonnes in Africa and 1.0 million tonnes in Oceania. World apparent consumption totaled 157.7 million tonnes, or 100.3 million tonnes when China was excluded. (Consumption of aquatic foods)
Per-person figures reveal a different comparison. Africa averaged 10.0 kilograms per person in 2019, while North America averaged 22.7 kilograms. Asia had 26.3 kilograms of aquatic animal food available per person in 2023, compared with 9.1 kilograms in Africa. The 2019 apparent-consumption figures and 2023 availability figures use different years and should be read in their stated context. (Consumption of aquatic foods; SOFIA 2026)
In 2019, Latin America and the Caribbean accounted for 6.4 million tonnes of apparent aquatic food consumption. High-income countries accounted for 32.0 million tonnes, while upper-middle-income countries averaged 28.1 kilograms per person. These statistics describe apparent consumption, not a household survey of meal frequency. (Consumption of aquatic foods)
Species mix and farmed-versus-wild consumption
Finfish remained the largest part of global aquatic food consumption per person, supplying nearly 75% in 2019. Freshwater and diadromous species supplied 40%, while marine finfish supplied 33%. The categories are components of the broader finfish picture, so the percentages should not be added as if they represented every aquatic food category. (Consumption of aquatic foods)
The long-term species mix also changed. Global freshwater and diadromous fish consumption rose from 1.5 kilograms per person in 1961 to 8.2 kilograms in 2019. Crustacean consumption rose from 0.4 kilograms to 2.2 kilograms per person over the same period. Mollusc consumption excluding cephalopods increased from 0.6 kilograms to 2.5 kilograms. (Consumption of aquatic foods)
Aquaculture became a much larger source of food available for people. It supplied 6% of aquatic foods available for human consumption in the 1960s and 50% in the 2010s. A preliminary estimate put aquaculture’s share at 56% in 2020. The 2020 figure is explicitly preliminary, while the earlier figures describe historical periods. (Consumption of aquatic foods)
U.S. seafood consumption per person and import reliance
U.S. per-capita seafood consumption was 19.1 pounds in 2023, according to NOAA’s Fisheries of the United States. A USDA summary reported 20.8 pounds in 2022. The two figures refer to adjacent years, not conflicting measurements of the same period. (Fisheries of the United States; Aquaculture)
USDA reported that U.S. per-capita seafood consumption grew 38% from 1990 to 2022, while the NOAA-linked USDA estimate reported 26% growth from 1990 to 2023. The cited USDA material also gave an estimated imported share of approximately 75%–90% for 1990–2022. NOAA estimated that 80% of the seafood Americans ate came from foreign imports in 2023. Because these are source-reported estimates, they should not be treated as independently verified here. (Aquaculture)
Trade volumes underline that reliance. The United States imported 6.3 billion pounds of edible seafood products in 2023 and exported 2.5 billion pounds. U.S. aquaculture produced an estimated 688 million pounds of seafood, valued at $1.3 billion, in 2023. Production is labeled an estimate in the source. (Fisheries of the United States)
U.S. seafood eating frequency and demographics
CDC estimates from a targeted U.S. NHANES food-frequency questionnaire show that 24.3% of adults aged 20 and older consumed seafood at least twice per week during August 2021–August 2023. The comparable share among youth aged 2–19 was 7.7%. The questionnaire measured frequency, not portion size, and seafood included fish and shellfish. (Seafood Consumption Among Youth and Adults: United States, August 2021–August 2023)
Among youth, 8.0% of females and 7.4% of males met the at-least-twice-weekly measure. Among adults, the corresponding figures were 24.9% for females and 23.7% for males. Income-group differences were larger: the adult share was 15.8% below 130% of the federal poverty level, 20.6% at 130%–349%, and 31.2% at 350% or more. (CDC Seafood Consumption Among Youth and Adults)
The share eating seafood at least twice per week increased between the earlier and later survey periods. Youth rose from 5.8% in 2013–2014 to 7.7% in August 2021–August 2023. Adults rose from 20.7% to 24.3% across those periods. These are survey estimates for the stated age groups and periods, not annual household consumption totals. (CDC Seafood Consumption Among Youth and Adults)
Popular seafood types in the United States
Shrimp was the most commonly reported type among the listed U.S. categories during the previous 30 days in August 2021–August 2023. It was consumed by 44.8% of adults and 26.0% of youth ages 2–19. Salmon followed at 34.6% of adults and 19.7% of youth. Among adults, tuna reached 31.9%. (CDC Seafood Consumption Among Youth and Adults)
These figures measure whether a person consumed each type during the previous 30 days, so they do not indicate servings, quantity or rank across every seafood species. They complement, rather than replace, the broader per-capita supply measures reported by NOAA and USDA.
EU household seafood consumption and market measures
EU apparent seafood consumption reached 22.89 kilograms per person in 2023, the lowest level of the decade and 3% below 2022. Wild products accounted for 16.36 kilograms per person, while farmed products accounted for 6.53 kilograms. (The EU Fish Market 2025)
The EU self-sufficiency rate for fishery and aquaculture products was 38.1% in 2023. In other words, the published market measure places EU supply and consumption in a context where domestic production does not cover the full market. The statistic is a self-sufficiency rate, not a measure of individual household behavior. (The EU Fish Market 2025)
Household spending moved differently from per-person apparent consumption. EU household expenditure on fishery and aquaculture products reached €62.8 billion in 2024, up 4% from 2023. At-home purchases of fresh fish fell by more than 4% between 2023 and 2024. Spending, purchase volume and apparent consumption therefore describe related but distinct market dimensions. (The EU Fish Market 2025)