Riya Mala 
[Photo: FILE]
Tuna remains one of Fiji’s most valuable resources, generating billions globally, but limited value-added processing is preventing the country from fully capturing its economic benefits.
Minister for Fisheries, Alitia Bainivalu, says Fiji continues to export most of its tuna in raw form for sashimi markets, instead of fully tapping into high-value products like fish oil and processed goods.
She warns that this reliance on raw exports is preventing the country from maximizing returns from its fisheries sector.
The Minister highlights that products such as fish oil, widely used in pharmaceuticals, present untapped opportunities that could significantly boost revenue if developed at scale.
“For example, the extraction of fish oil, and fish oil is a very important component of some of the medicines that have been used by pharmaceutical companies. So that’s some of the potential areas that we can tap into to maximize the benefit that we get from our TUNA, because mostly now we are exporting our TUNA whole and fresh for our sashimi markets.”
Alitia Bainivalu says limited funding and research are slowing growth, and while Pacific Fishing Company has begun value-adding and fish oil extraction, efforts must scale up to boost returns.
The government is seeking more partnerships and investment to expand processing, with experts warning Fiji risks losing out on the full value of its tuna industry without urgent action.
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