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Top Story what Alaska cod is." Pacific cod (Gadus mac- rocephalus) or P-cod, which is often processed into the dried-and-salted traditional favorite bacalao, is big in Brazil. It's usually sent to Norway or Portugal first for processing. In Portugal, however, there is a distinct preference for Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua). Te emergence of the Brazilian market has been a salve for Norway, according to the United Nations' Food to Brazil dropped almost 25 percent from 2010 to 2011, to 14.7 million pounds. Te reason for that could be as simple as DIPOA, or the Department of Inspection of Products Originated from Animals. Exporters must be on the DIPOA list to ship to Brazil. But it is notoriously difficult to get on the list. "We've had a full-time employee focusing on that for over a year and we haven't been successful," says SOG- DA's Babadzhanov. "Tere are bribes offered to pay, but we can't function that way. If "Those [emerging] markets are still third-world countries. If something goes wrong and there's no government support, you're digging yourself a bigger grave." — Alex Babadzhanov, general manager, SOGDA Ltd. and Agriculture Organiza- tion (FAO). "Brazil has become a growing destination for Nor- wegian cod, helping to ease somewhat the concerns of Norwegian exporters that their sales in Southern Eu- rope were being affected by the economic crisis," FAO stated in its State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2012 report, released in July. "In addition to the major importing countries, a num- ber of emerging markets have become of growing impor- tance to the world's export- ers," the report continues. "Prominent among these are Brazil, Mexico, the Russian Federation, Egypt, Asia and the Near East in general. In 2010, developed countries were responsible for 76 per- cent of the total import value of fish and fishery products, a decline compared with 86 percent of 1990 and 83 per- cent of 2000." Strangely, exports of P-cod or any other Alaska seafood direct to Brazil are limited — in fact, U.S. seafood exports we have to wait a couple of years, so be it." Jacobson says access to DI- POA is a multi-step process that can get "super compli- cated." Processing plants must be registered first, and then all products must be individually registered. "It's a five- to 10- year project," he says. Vietnamese pangasius exporters, struggling with lowered production levels as farmers exit the business due to rising costs and low farm- gate prices, are always look- ing for the next big market. Brazil, which represented just 3.6 percent of its panga- sius exports in the first quar- ter of this year, might be it. Sales are slipping to the E.U., its biggest market at 26.7 percent (January through April 2012), according to the Vietnam Association of Sea- food Exporters and Produc- ers. Furthermore, there have been many ups and downs with Russia and the United States regarding tariffs and quality concerns. Brazil is also an impor- tant market for Norway's 24 SeaFood Business September 2012 klippfish (salted or dried codfish) producers, says Paul Aandahl, market analyst for the NSC. While Norway has seen very little growth in its whitefish sector in recent years, its overall exports have been growing substantially. From 2007 to 2011, seafood exports increased 50 percent from $6.3 billion to $9.5 bil- lion, according to NSC. Norway's seafood exports to China increased 150 per- cent in that time, while ex- ports to India increased by 13.5 percent and Brazil by 21.4 percent. "Te growth in direct ex- port to China has slowed down, and we can see that salmon from other producing nations is entering China in increased numbers," says Aan- dahl. "Te Chinese salmon market is still growing." Overnight sensation? Te Chinese market is growing for other seafood products as well, namely American (Homarus ameri- canus) and Australian (Panu- lirus spp.) lobsters. According to Statistics Canada, lobster export values from Atlantic Canada to China increased from roughly $1 million in 2010 to $30 million in 2011. China became the nation's No. 2 lobster market, behind the United States, overnight. "Tere was no market three years ago," says Ryan Temere, sales manager for By Te Water Shellfish in Bor- den, Prince Edward Island, who says the company's Chi- na exports represent about 25 to 33 percent of its business. It's an exciting development, but he's careful not to put too many eggs in one basket. "I wouldn't want to rely on the Chinese market, because that could close tomorrow," he says. "A trade dispute could happen at any time." "As bad as the U.S. sounds now, it's still the safest to do business with," says Babadzh- anov. "Tose [emerging] markets are still third-world countries. If something goes wrong and there's no govern- ment support, you're digging yourself a bigger grave." Temere and Babadzhanov both say developing a rela- tionship with one customer or a handful of customers in the BRICS bloc helps to cre- ate a sense of trust. But for Temere, it hasn't always been smooth, like the time a customer in China sought a credit on dead lob- sters. Te picture the buyer sent as proof showed lobsters with different colored bands than the ones originally shipped, and boxes from a manufacturer they hadn't worked with in years. "A pic- ture of a dead lobster looks an awful lot like a picture of a live lobster," Temere laughs. "Logistics is always an issue, with two-day tran- sit times. You could do ev- erything right and still have everything go wrong." Increasing tariffs on Aus- tralian rock lobster really opened up this trade channel for Canadian exports, says Temere. Regardless, Austra- lian suppliers remain focused on the allure of the Chinese market, adds Roy Palmer, director of Seafood Experi- ence Australia. E.U. tariffs remain high and the United States has several competing products at its disposal. Tat leaves one lucrative avenue. "All the rock lobster people in Australia are thinking is China. Live and high prices," says Palmer. "Not much sci- ence to it. Demand driven." Demand, as usual, deter- mines where the global sea- food supply is destined. And as many suppliers are find- ing out, it's not the same old place it used to be. Email Senior Editor James Wright at jwright@divcom.com Visit us online at www.seafoodbusiness.com