In April, 974 tonnes of fish were landed by Belgian vessels and sold in Belgian ports. This is a normal landing given the seasonal fluctuations. However, the lack of markets due to the Covid-19 crisis caused the price of fish to fall sharply. The crisis caused a decrease in demand in restaurants and catering establishments, markets were closed and exports fell sharply.
Sole and ray rank first with a share of 31 % and 12 %, respectively, of the quantity of fish landed and sold, i.e. 303 and 113 tonnes. Landings of plaice were limited but remained at the same level as in February: 76 tonnes.
Despite the sharp price decrease for sole to 8.82 euros per kilo, this fish species accounted for 64 % of the total value of fish sold. The share in value of plaice and ray remains around the order of 3 to 4 %. Monkfish accounts for 7 % of the value this month, which is mainly due to landed quantities that fluctuate little and a price that, in relative terms, remains better.