Investing in Blue Foods 2026

2 The global blue food sector faces a series of challenges that are amplified in the context of Africa. These include feed costs, waste, disease, illegal fishing, governance and environmental pressures. Input challenges In Africa, feed constraints drive aquaculture production costs 10-20% higher than global averages, with feed accounting for 70-80%31 of total costs compared with about 60%32 globally. High costs are driven by dependence on conventional fish feed, which is imported due to limited local feed production capacity and consists of soymeal (also essential for human consumption) and fishmeal (extracted from wild capture fish). Smallholder farmers, who may struggle to afford imported feed, often use low-grade local feed with poor feed-to-body mass conversion ratios (2.5 vs. 1.5 global average for tilapia),33,34 leading to longer grow-out periods, when fish take more time to reach harvest size. Limited access to both good quality feed and healthy fish fingerlings (young fish used to stock farms)35 means lower productivity. These inefficiencies, along with the dependence on imported inputs, continues to limit Africa’s competitiveness and growth across the blue foods sector. High levels of loss and waste Africa loses one-third36 of its blue food output before it reaches consumers. Inefficient cold chains, transport and processing capacity make spoilage and waste the largest sources of loss. These shortcomings affect nutrition and incomes, highlighting the urgent need for investment in infrastructure and value-chain coordination to capture the full potential of production gains. Disease outbreaks and health risks Disease remains a critical vulnerability, due to limited biosecurity and health management systems. The ISKNV (infectious spleen and kidney necrosis virus) outbreak on Lake Volta, for instance, has caused mortality rates of 60-90%37 in some farms. Globally, aquaculture disease costs are estimated at $6 billion annually,38 but the lack of diagnostic capacity and certified seed systems makes the impact far more severe in Africa. Strengthening surveillance, veterinary networks and seed quality are key factors in reducing these losses. Governance and traceability gaps Strengthening Africa’s fisheries governance presents an important opportunity to build transparency and competitiveness. About 36% of tuna and shrimp fishing from 2016 to 2021 was potentially illegal – nearly double the 20% global average.39 Inefficient monitoring, vessel tracking and catch documentation reduce transparency and erode market confidence, costing the region hundreds of millions in lost export value.40 Globally, illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing causes $10-20 billion in annual losses,41 underscoring the importance of tighter regulation and traceability systems in Africa’s context.2.1 Challenges limiting blue foods’ ability to scale up are amplified in AfricaLifting industry performance to global averages across key challenge areas – input costs, waste, disease and illegal fishing – could deliver a 40% boost to Africa’s blue food supply.Challenges facing blue food systems Africa loses one-third of its blue food output before it reaches consumers. Investing in Blue Foods: Innovation and Partnerships for Impact 10