Current trends in the ornamental fish industry

Just like every other biology student in Holland, I also had to take a course in statistics. One of the most frequently quoted references was the book "How to lie with statistics." The figures presented in statistical tables may seem to be so very informative, but who wants to comb through these figures?Trade statistics are completely dependent on the accuracy of registration. With regard to the Dutch situation, I was able to demonstrate (November 2004) that none of the available trade statistics on ornamental fish and other pets are reliable. I am sure the Netherlands is not an island with respect to the rest of the world. In addition, other trade statistics are at best an estimate of the real situation. Unlike food, for example, the registration of ornamental aquatic animals does not take priority, but at least we do have sta-tistics within the ornamental fish sector. With regard to most other pets, there are no official statistics available.Top 25 countries exporting ornamental fish(download pdf-file)Additionally, the statistics of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) are not accurate. Too many situations are not taken into consideration. However, these are the best we have. And due to the consistent methods applied, they at least provide information on trends that can prove very valuable.Export of ornamental fishThe most recent figures from 2002 confirm the development of the growth in the world export value of ornamental fish in recent years. At over $189 mio, the industry experienced 3.4 per cent more growth than that seen in the year 2001, although it was still 8.1 per cent lower than the record year of 1996.Export volume for ornamental fish (in $ mio per year)(download pdf-file)The top ten exporting countries grew quite a bit in strength during the years 1999-2002. In 1999 they represented 66 per cent of the total value, and in 2002 this share increased to 68 per cent. During the same period, the total number of exporting countries also increased from 92 to 104. During the first year that the stat-istics became available, this figure was as low as 27, so it is clear that more and more countries see the export of ornamental fish as a valuable source of income, although for about half of the exporting countries the total value is less than $100 000.Top 25 exporting countriesIn 2002, the figures for the top 25 exporting countries showed some striking changes when compared with the rankings in 2001 (in parentheses after the…