THE GROWTH OF CANNED TUNA
The globalization of tuna canning has become increasingly apparent over the last couple of decades. It has been followed by capital allocation into a few operations like wholesalers, traders and canneries as a way of decreasing the canning costs. Over time, tuna factories have been relocated from the developed nations to the areas that are closer to the raw materials and fisheries. This has aided the tuna canning process in that it reduces labour and the costs of transhipment as well as providing flexible marketing of exports. In the past, the establishment of a viable canning industry was seen as a condition needed to obtain access to fishing. However, product development has helped create low costs for transhipment as well as lower the costs of productions for the canning industry, and this has been vital in the globalization of the canned tuna industry (Sullivan 2014).
According to Sullivan (2014), the packaging and size of tuna cans has transformed with time. The industry has had to deal with high production costs mainly by decreasing the sizes of the can and having fresh experiments with pouches. Pouches cost less and are easy to reach for the consumers. The canned tuna industry attempted to expand by manufacturing flavoured tuna that has been seasoned with a number of different ingredients in different countries in a bid to improve and expand their market.
While the efficiencies of canned tuna decreased due to several fresh elements, the process of making the product turned out to be extremely dynamic. As overfishing became an issue and protecting the oceans became more popular, the global tuna canning industry responded to sustainability requirements, it became very clear that few industries had risen to the challenge presented. The capability to operate in an innovative manner, while remaining ambitious and decisive was uncommon in the past. Other industries had been stalling and risking competitive advantage through the loss of access to sustainable supplies (Sullivan 2014).
The modern worldwide processing industry for canned tuna was established in 1950s. That was in conjunction with the establishment of industrial-scale tropical tuna fisheries. There was a huge increase in the demand of canned tuna in the early 1980s that led to a major growth in many fishing fleets and production facilities, as canned tuna needed to be processed swiftly with a growing supply of canning materials. Initially, production of canned tuna was ruled by the United States mainland, Japan and the European Union, who, when combined, formed over 67% of the total worldwide production until the 1980s. There were new developments in the canning industry with new industries established in Thailand and Philippines in the same period. Others were established in Latin America and South East Asia at low costs meaning that the monopoly and dominance of the original three was reduced.
Just like the fishing for the canned tuna industry, the processing industry for canned tuna is both intricate and dynamic. Processing operations worldwide are often affected by issues like the costs of growing raw materials, difficult traffic rules, as well as increasingly harsher standards and fluctuating preferences form customers. Modern estimations indicate that worldwide, at least 144 facilities for tuna processing are presently in operation for canned tuna products.
In the USA, canned Tuna demand is being diminished by the high prices of tuna. The prices of canned tuna in 2012 increased by over 10% in the wholesale levels as compare to the same levels in 2010. In Thailand, the exports of canned tuna showed a negative quantity growth, with a significant increase in the values in the same period. Shipments made to the main markets in Egypt, the USA and Libya have reduced by huge percentages between 2010 and 2012. There have however, been positive growth to different markets in Japan and the UK.
