The Great Seafood Surrender: Why Australia’s Plate Is Full of Imports

Despite being surrounded by some of the most abundant and well-managed fisheries on Earth, Australia now imports over 70% of its seafood.

Let that sink in.

We have the waters. We have the workforce. We have the knowledge.

And yet, policy after policy — wrapped in green tape and global trade dogma — has eroded our ability to feed ourselves.

How Did This Happen?

The collapse of Australia’s local seafood supply is no accident. It’s the result of intentional policy settings and trade alignments that prioritise everything but the Australian seafood consumer.

Marine Park Lockouts

Large areas of productive fishing grounds have been permanently closed to commercial operators — often without evidence of overfishing or clear food security assessments. These decisions are typically driven by international conservation targets, not local dietary needs.

Recreational-Only Zones

Entire waterways — once used to feed communities — have been reallocated for recreational use. Food production has been sidelined in favour of leisure.

Industry “Reform” and Buybacks

Successive governments have forced small-scale commercial fishers out through mandatory buybacks and efficiency reforms, aligned with WTO principles of market rationalisation. These reforms weren’t about sustainability — they were about streamlining industry at the expense of diversity and access.

Cheap Imports Flooding the Market

While Australian fishers face mounting restrictions, our supermarket shelves are filled with imported seafood — often from countries with lower environmental, labour, and food safety standards. WTO trade rules, designed to favour free flow of goods, make it nearly impossible for local operators to compete on price.

The Graph They Won’t Show You in Parliament

Since Australia joined the WTO in 1995, local commercial fishing effort has declined sharply, while seafood imports have surged.

This is no coincidence. It’s cause and effect.

Is This Really What We Voted For?

The WTO doesn’t instruct Australia to shut down its fisheries or flood its markets with imports.

But its framework — built on trade liberalisation, deregulation, and open markets — has shaped every major seafood policy in this country for the past 30 years.

Governments eager to align with global standards and win political favour from environmental and recreational lobby groups have:

• Locked out local fishers

• Reallocated public waters for non-commercial use

• Smothered small operators in red tape

• Exported food production to countries with weaker regulations

• Celebrated “sustainability” while shrinking domestic supply

And Who Benefits?

• Multinational seafood importers

• Major retailers chasing margins

• Politicians banking green votes

• Tourism and recreation interests

Certainly not Australian seafood consumers.

The Consequences Are Clear

• Fewer fishers

• Higher prices

• Lower quality

• Shrinking regional economies

• Disconnection from the ocean that defines us

Australia — a nation girt by sea — is becoming dependent on foreign seafood.

It’s Time to Take Back Our Seafood

This isn’t just a fisheries issue. It’s a matter of food security, sovereignty, and fairness.

We must:

• Reclaim access to our own waters for local food production

• Rebuild a domestic seafood supply chain that serves Australians first

• Re-evaluate our trade commitments when they compromise our national interest

If you believe every Australian should have access to fresh, locally caught seafood, now is the time to act.

👉 Join Seafood Society Australia — the first grassroots organisation standing up for seafood consumers.Membership is just $10 a year and gives you a voice in the fight for our seafood future.

🔗 Click here to join now.

We helped build the WTO. Now we must ask: Is it still serving us — or just serving others?

Because if we don’t act, the next generation may grow up never knowing what fresh, locally caught Australian seafood even tastes like.