Peruvian aquacultural harvest saw a significant decrease of 25.43% between 2022 and 2023, according to a USDA report. The total aquaculture harvest in 2023 came in at 105,091 tons, a 25.43% decrease from 2022. This decrease in overall yield is attributed to a variety of factors—warmer water temperatures because of El Niño, political unrest reducing the productivity of agricultural workers, and limited production infrastructure.

As of 2024, there were nearly 12,700 aquaculture operations across the country. Aquaculture production takes place across Peru. Shrimp production takes place primarily in the northern regions of Tumbes and Piura, while trout production occurs primarily in the highland regions of Puno and Ancash.

Shrimp

The shrimp segment in Peru suffered severely in 2023 as a result of plummeting international prices and an inability to compete with the low-cost production in the neighboring nation, Ecuador. Peru has historically been unsuccessful in competing with Ecuador due to their low-cost, high-quantity production methods.

Rainbow trout

Rainbow trout is predominantly produced in the southern region of Puno, with nationwide consumption accounting for 70% of total production. The concentration of production in Puno revealed a supply chain challenge in 2022 with the onset of protests and political unrest. Agricultural workers were leaders in these protests, lessening production of a domestic staple and consequentially weakening their rural economies. This has had a lasting impact on the trout segment in Peru, with internal sales having reduced by 49.1% between 2022 and 2023.

Tilapia

In recent years, tilapia production from the Peruvian seafood industry has acted contrary to weakening trends seen in other segments. While tilapia production in 2023 was limited to 2,791 metric tons, this presented a 13.2% increase in production levels between 2022 and 2023, according to PRODUCE data.