The US government's 50% tariff increase on Indian marine products, imposed in August last year, has severely affected Andhra Pradesh's seafood exports. The state, which supplies over 32% of India's seafood, saw exporters stop buying stock from farmers. "With the U.S. market down, exporters aren’t buying stocks from aqua farmers anymore. In some areas, the farmers have announced temporary crop holiday," said Bhimavaram farmer K. Nageswara Rao. Data from the Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) shows India exported 13,69,264 tonnes of seafood in 2021-22, rising to over 17 lakh tonnes in 2022-23 and 2023-24, worth ₹60,523 crore. The US accounts for about 35% of this trade. Godavari Mega Aqua Food Park vice-president Uddaraju Jogi Anand Varma said exports to the US dropped by about 25% recently. "We employ thousands of workers from states like Odisha and Bihar at our park," he added. Seafood Exporters Association of India Andhra Pradesh president K. Anand Kumar said exporters are shifting focus to markets in China, Vietnam, the European Union, and Russia. "Shipments to the EU and China have increased over the past few months. We request the Centre to intervene and have Free Trade Agreements with other countries to help the aqua sector," he requested.