UK's Fish Supply

Based on this article

Fish demand 'exceeds UK sea supply' 

Level of consumption in 2012 has already met annual fish supplies, leaving the UK reliant on imported stocks 

·         Press Association
·         guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 21 August 2012 10.47 BST 

Annual fish supplies from UK seas can only satisfy demand for 233 days. Photograph: Bethany Clarke/Getty Images 

UK fish consumption in 2012 has already matched what our seas can supply for the year, leaving the country reliant on imported cod and haddock for fish and chips, campaigners have warned.
Annual fish supplies from UK seas can only satisfy demand for 233 days, so if the UK were to rely on its own fisheries for the year we would run out of stocks by today, a report from the New Economics Foundation (NEF) calculated.
At least one in three fish consumed here is imported from outside the EU, the thinktank said, with the UK reliant on countries such as Iceland, Norway and even China for a large share of traditional British fish.The situation has improved since last year, when the UK effectively ran out of fish more than a month earlier than in 2012, but is largely unchanged over the past decade.
But if the UK's seas were better managed to allow fish stocks to recover from overfishing, it could meet annual demand from its own waters and even be a net exporter of fish, NEF suggested.The UK imports more than 101,000 tonnes of cod, worth £372m, and 60,000 tonnes of haddock, worth £156m, in a year, the majority of which comes from outside the EU, according to figures from 2010.Rupert Crilly, of the NEF, said the UK had access to productive fishinggrounds and had moderate levels of consumption compared to some other European countries such as Spain and Portugal.
"It could produce as much as it needs but instead it is a net importer of fish."Consumers understand that we import tuna which is virtually non-existent in its waters; but they will wonder why we need to import cod and haddock from China when our cod and haddock stocks could deliver five and three times more catches with better management," he said.Across Europe the situation is even more acute, with EU consumption of fish outstripping the bloc's annual fish supplies by 6 July.Campaigners are calling for ambitious reform of the European Union's common fisheries policy, which governs the fishing activities of the EU fleet, to ensure fisheries are more sustainably managed to prevent overfishing.They are also calling for the EU to promote responsible consumption by EU consumers and to make sure fishing outside the bloc's waters is done more responsibly.Ian Campbell, UK co-ordinator for Ocean2012, a coalition of organisations, said: "Fishing within sustainable levels and adapting fish consumption to available resources is the only way to regain healthy fishing grounds."
An Environment Department spokeswoman said: "Overfishing has been a central failing of the current common fisheries policy and the UK is adamant that the new CFP, which is currently under negotiation in Brussels, must ensure catches are set at a level that is sustainable."We will not be able to rebuild fish stocks without getting this right."

UK's Fish Supply

The demand of fish in UK has been exceeds the maximum amount of Europe sea’s supply. Annual UK fish supply can only fulfill UK consumers of fish for 233 days and UK would run out of fish stock if they only depend on itw own fisheries. This report has been calculated by New Economics Foundation or NEF. UK has imported the fish from some countries such as such as Iceland, Norway and even China. This situation means that the demand of fish in UK is really high even higher than the supply that can be produced by the country. If the quantity demanded is higher than quantity supplied, it indicates that there is a shortage and there is also an increase both in the equilibrium price and in the equilibrium quantity.

UK can fix the disproportion between the quantity demanded and the quantity supplied of fish by elevate or forces up the price of fish so that the quantity demanded of fish will drop into a lower amount. If the quantity demanded of fish becomes lower, UK’s supply of fish can fulfill the quantity demanded. The other choice to revise it is by making a better way to manage the UK’s seas, to save its fish stocks from overfishing even UK could be a net fish exporter. NEF itself has recommended this solution. 

As it has written from the article, UK has imported more than 101,000 tonnes of cod, which is worth £372 million, and 60,000 tonnes of haddock, which is worth £156 million, in a year. According to Rupert Crilly from NEF, UK could produce fish more than the amount that they have imported because UK has the access to productive fishing grounds and the consumption of fish in UK is not as big as the other European countries such as Spain and Portugal, but instead UK becomes a net fish importer. Even some consumers are wondering why do they have to import cod and haddock while their sea has a lot stocks of it. Once again it is related to the UK’s seas management which actually can be improved. UK’s supply of fish especially cod and haddock are a lot but they could not manage it well so that they experienced a situation when the quantity demanded are higher than the quantity supplied of fish. If UK can manage well its sea, UK can boost up the number of the quantity supplied of fish. When there is an increase in supply, there will be a movement down along the demand curve which means will drop the equilibrium price but will make the equilibrium quantity of fish becomes higher. When the total amount of quantity supplied of fish increases, it will fulfill the consumer’s need or the quantity demanded of fish and the producer do not have to make the price of fish higher because the supply of fish has already meet the public’s need. When there is an increase in supply, there will be a surplus because the quantity supplied of fish is now bigger than the quantity demanded of fish. The producer will get more than it actually needed. Even the producer can make the price lower because they still have a lot of fish stocks and according to the law of demand, the higher the price of a good the smaller is the quantity demanded and the lower the price of a good the larger is the quantity demanded. When UK has a lot of supplies or even more than its citizen’s need they can make the price lower or export it to the other countries. Although UK sell it with lower price but the quantity demanded is increasing more than its markdown so that UK still can get bigger profit. I think this way seems will be more favorable for UK than if they sell it with no change in the price of fish which will make the quantity demanded of fish remains the same. This situation shows that the quantity demanded are increasing and the quantity supplied of fish increase too.

When UK imported the fish, it means the stock of the fish will increase. As it shown from the graph above, the increase in the change of supply will make the supply curve shift rightward. It also change the equilibrium point. There will be an increase in equilibrium quantity but a decrease in equilibrium price of the fish.

Over fishing in UK has made the country suffer from the costs. They have to manage the UK’s seas well in order to prevent the over fishing which can cause UK to inapplicability between the demand and supply of fish in the country. UK will get more of profit. According to Ian Campbell, UK co-ordinator for Ocean2012, a coalition of organisations, UK has to make a policy that can make a stable condition. Because if this kind of situation is being supined, it will make the imbalance worse and if the demand and supply can not meet at the equilibrium price and the equilibrium quantity of fish, the demand are getting higher while the supply are getting lower. It will make UK must import the supply of fish for fulfill the demand of fish which means UK has expenditure on unnecessary things and could not get the profit from exporting the fish because actually they can produce the fish itself both for own consumption and for being the net exportir of fish.

Actually, if there is any substitute for the fish, the demand is elastic. Because people in UK will looking for the substitute such as chicken, beef, or anything else instead of the fish whose supply is low and hardly to get if the goverment do not import it. Moreover, if the supply is low, it means there will be the scarcity of fish which can make the fish price higher than before. I think it will be better if people in UK look for the subtitutes until the supply of fish that can be produce by UK itself can fulfill the demand. But for some people, the demand of fish in UK is inelastic. For example is the seafood restaurant, one of their main menu is fish so they cannot cut off their stock of fish straight away or at least they only can cut a bit of their fish stocks.