Japan Sea saury season off to a cold start: cumulative Far Eastern sardine catch only 3,180 tons by early November, down more than 90% year-on-year

Russian fisheries information agency Fishnews reported on November 4, citing a review by the Pacific Fisheries Research Institute (referred to as the Pacific branch by the Russian side), that as of early November, the cumulative catch of Far Eastern sardine (иваси) in the Japan Sea was 3,180 tons, of which the Primorye subarea had caught only about 3,200 tons as of November 1. This figure is vastly different from the same period last year: on November 4, 2025, the Far Eastern sardine catch was 51,300 tons, and even that season was considered a weak season.

The report noted that no Far Eastern sardine fishing operations were carried out in the waters of the South Kuril Islands this year. Last week, there were five fishing vessels operating in Peter the Great Bay, namely the "Kirovka", "Tikhmenyevo", "Ekarma", "Oktyabr", and "Uzon". In the first half of the week, operations were concentrated in Ussuri Bay; after a storm in the second half of the week, the vessels moved to Posyet Bay, where the surface water temperature is higher. Daily catches ranged from 0.1 tons to 41.1 tons, averaging 15.9 tons.

In terms of progress, the cumulative catch as of early November was 3,180 tons, of which 382 tons were added within one week. The mackerel catch remained at 14 tons. By comparison, the mackerel catch on November 4, 2025, was 1,400 tons.

As for other species, Russian vessels ended saury fishing on October 27, with a cumulative catch of 358 tons. Foreign vessels had caught about 35,600 tons of saury as of October 24, equivalent to 30.8% of the recommended high-seas catch.

The above data were compiled and published by Fishnews reporters based on the review by the Pacific Fisheries Research Institute.