South Korea Seafood Market Size: What the Trade Statistics Show

Data as of: SEACHING analysis of Korea Customs Service data through September 2026, queried October 15, 2026; Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries production data for 2025 (preliminary); KREI Food Balance Sheet for 2023.

South Korea’s seafood market has no single official size. The clearest measure for exporters is imports: Korea imported US$5.97 billion of fish, crustaceans, molluscs and prepared seafood in 2025, according to SEACHING analysis of Korea Customs Service data. Domestic production was 3.93 million tonnes, according to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF, preliminary).

Key takeaways

• Korea imported US$5,974.9 million of seafood (HS 03 and 1603–1605) in 2025, 1.37 million tonnes, according to SEACHING analysis of Korea Customs Service data.
• Korea’s official indicator portal, e-Narajipyo, puts Korea’s 2025 seafood imports at US$6.44 billion, up 7.5% from 2024, because it counts a wider product list, including salt.
• Korea produced 3,934,971 tonnes of seafood in 2025, worth KRW 10.24 trillion, according to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (preliminary).
• In 2023, Korea’s fish and shellfish imports of 2.28 million tonnes equaled 67.2% of its domestic consumption of 3.39 million tonnes, according to the Korea Rural Economic Institute (KREI) Food Balance Sheet.

How big is the South Korean seafood market?

It depends on what you measure. For a supplier, the most useful number is Korea’s import value, the part of the market foreign sellers compete for.

Definition: “seafood market size” in Korea
Korea’s official statistics measure production (tonnes and Korean won), imports (customs value in US dollars) and apparent consumption (tonnes). None of them is a retail sales figure.

Sources: as listed in the table; see Sources and method.

Scope note: in this article, Korea’s seafood imports means HS chapter 03 plus prepared fish and crustaceans (HS 1603–1605); seaweed and salt are excluded. The production totals, by contrast, include seaweed aquaculture.

Why do market size estimates disagree?

Because they count different products at different points in the supply chain. An import value stops at the border and is a customs value (CIF). A retail figure would also carry importer, wholesale and store margins. A production figure is in tonnes or won.

Market size figures in paid research reports are not official statistics. If a figure does not state its products, price level and data series, it cannot be checked against official data.

Even official import figures differ by product list:

Sources: e-Narajipyo; USDA FAS GAIN KS2025-0046; SEACHING analysis of Korea Customs Service data, queried October 15, 2026.

For 2024, the USDA figure is within 0.2% of SEACHING’s HS 03 and 1603–1605 total, which suggests the two cover nearly the same products. In 2025 the e-Narajipyo series is about US$465 million higher because its product list is wider.

What do official statistics measure?

They measure production, imports and consumption, each in its own unit, so the figures cannot be added into one market value. Korea’s 2025 production of 3,934,971 tonnes rose 8.7% from 2024, and its value rose 1.4% to KRW 10.24 trillion, according to the MOF. Aquaculture supplied 2,530,277 tonnes, or 64.3% of the total; coastal and offshore fishing supplied 977,648 tonnes and distant-water fishing 382,660 tonnes.

For fish and shellfish alone, the KREI Food Balance Sheet gives a like-for-like picture. In 2023, Korea produced 1,932.7 thousand tonnes, imported 2,278.6 thousand tonnes and consumed 3,391.9 thousand tonnes. Production covered 57.0% of consumption.

For per-person figures, see the guide to Korea’s seafood consumption per capita; for the 57% rate, the analysis of Korea’s seafood self-sufficiency.

How do you read market size from trade statistics?

Start from the import total, then break it down by HS code and origin. In 2025, live, fresh, frozen, dried and salted fish, crustaceans and molluscs (HS chapter 03) made up 86.4% of Korea’s imports in this scope, and prepared products (HS 1603–1605) 13.6%.

The market is spread across many lines. The 10 largest 10-digit codes took 36.4% of Korea’s 2025 import value. Frozen squid (free sign-up), HS 0307.43.2090, led with US$413.3 million, followed by frozen peeled shrimp (free sign-up), HS 0306.17.1090, at US$401.0 million and fresh or chilled Atlantic salmon (free sign-up), HS 0302.14, at US$244.5 million.

In Jan–Sep 2026, Korea’s frozen peeled shrimp imports reached US$313.9 million, ahead of frozen squid at US$235.3 million. China supplied 23.7% of Korea’s 2025 seafood imports by value.

SEACHING, a Korea seafood trade data platform operated by LINKSUP, Inc. in Busan, shows this one product at a time. On an HS code page’s Trends tab, you can see how import value and unit price moved month by month, with the same figures in a table below the chart.

For species rankings, see what seafood Korea imports most; for the latest quarter, the Korea seafood imports report for Q3 2026.

Is Korea a net seafood importer?

Yes. The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) reports that Korea has been a net importer of seafood since 2001, as domestic supply of the main species falls short of demand.

Common misconception: “the market is smaller than its imports”

A “market size” figure below US$5.97 billion does not mean Korean demand is smaller than its imports. It means the figure measures something else, such as one channel or product group.

Nor does every imported kilo stay in Korea: USDA calls Korea one of the largest intermediary seafood hubs in Asia. Import value shows what crossed the border, not what consumers ate.

Which number should you cite?

Pick the measure that matches your question and quote its source and period.

Sources: see Sources and method.

To compare the data sources themselves, see Korea seafood import data sources compared.

Quote these figures, then check your own product

You may quote the official figures in this article with their original sources. For Korea’s imports of a specific species or origin, month by month, query the data on SEACHING (free sign-up) and cite “Source: SEACHING analysis of Korea Customs Service data, {period}.”

FAQ

How much seafood does South Korea import each year?

South Korea imported US$5,974.9 million of fish, crustaceans, molluscs and prepared seafood (HS 03 and 1603–1605) in 2025, according to SEACHING analysis of Korea Customs Service data. The e-Narajipyo series, which counts a wider product list including salt, gives US$6.44 billion.

Why is Korea’s seafood import figure different in USDA reports?

USDA counts fewer products than the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries series. For 2024, USDA reported US$5.52 billion, close to the HS 03 and 1603–1605 scope; e-Narajipyo reported US$5.98 billion.

Are Korea’s seafood imports growing in 2026?

Only slightly by value. Korea imported US$4,415.6 million of seafood (HS 03 and 1603–1605) in Jan–Sep 2026, up 0.7% from Jan–Sep 2025, according to SEACHING analysis of Korea Customs Service data. Import weight fell 4.6% over the same period.

Sources and method

• e-Narajipyo, “Fishery products exports and imports” (Korea Customs Service data), 2024–2025, updated August 10, 2026, checked October 15, 2026
• Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, press release on 2025 fishery production (preliminary), February 26, 2026, checked October 15, 2026
• Korea Rural Economic Institute, Food Balance Sheet 2023, 2023 preliminary, published December 2024
• USDA FAS GAIN KS2025-0046, Korea Seafood Market Update 2025, November 25, 2025
• SEACHING analysis of Korea Customs Service data, imports, HS 03 and 1603–1605, 10-digit HSK codes, January 2024 to September 2026, queried October 15, 2026. Totals sum all in-scope codes; the 2024 total sums origin-code pairs with at least US$100,000 in a 12-month window, so it is a lower bound. 2026 figures can still be revised.