U.S. Exports Before 1961, exports of sardines were very large and consisted almost entirely of sardines produced in California from pilchards. Since the virtual cessation of output in that State, U.S. exports of sardines have been negligible in relation to U.S. production and imports. In 1964-68, the exports reported in official statistics by the U.S. Bureau of the Census ranged from 1.4 million pounds, valued at $488,000, to 3.6 million pounds, valued at $1.2 million. In 1968 reported exports amounted to 3.0 million pounds, valued at $1.3 million (table 12). According to these data, Canada was the leading market in each of the years 1965-68. From information developed during the course of this investigation, however, it appears that the great bulk, if not all, of shipments to Canada have consisted of deliveries of Maine sardines (chiefly from the Eastport area) to the Canadian Pacific Railway for warehousing and ultimate reshipment to markets in the United States. U.S. Imports Annual U.S. imports of sardines have fluctuated greatly but have shown an upward trend. During 1959-68 they increased irregularly from about 22.2 million pounds, valued at $8.4 million, to 58.9 million pounds, valued at $18.8 million (table 13 and fig. 1 in appendix C). 1/ The average annual imports in this period of 44 million pounds, valued at $13.6 million, were about 60 percent larger by both quantity and value than the corresponding average in the preceding decade. Sardines not in oil The growth of sardine imports during 1959-68 reflects almost entirely a rise in imports of sardines not in oil (figure 2). Such imports, which since 1963 have accounted for more than half of the total, increased from about 1 million pounds, valued at $176,000 in 1959, to a high of 34 million pounds, valued at $5.5 million, in 1966. They declined the following year but rose in 1968 to 30.4 million pounds, valued at $5.6 million. At this level, imports of sardines not in oil were the largest by value, though the second largest by quantity. In the period 1959-68 the average annual imports--20.3 million pounds, valued at $3.2 million,--were nearly three times higher in both quantity and value than the corresponding average in 1949-58. The bulk of the imports of sardines not in oil consist of pilchards, a type no longer produced in the United States in volume, 1 For convenience, imports of skinned or boned sardines in oil, valued over 23 but not over 30 cents per pound, are included in the totals. Such imports, which are not covered by this investigation, have been very small in all years. packed either in half ovals of 8 ounces each, or 1-pound ovals or in oil. 1-pound talls with a net content of 15 ounces each. such imports accounted for 85 percent of total imports of sardines not They rose sharply from less than 1 million pounds, valued at $145,000, in 1959 to a high of 29 million pounds, valued at $4.2 million, in 1966 and amounted to 23.7 million pounds, valued at $3.7 million, in 1968. The Republic of South Africa has been virtually the sole supplier of this type of sardines (table 15). The sharp rise in imports of pilchard sardines not in oil during 1959-68 coincided with the precipitous decline of the California outBefore that time the annual imports were put of similar sardines. small or negligible except in the years in which California sardines were in short supply. Although imports in 1960-68 increased at an annual rate of nearly 2 million pounds, they did not fully compensate for the decrease in the California pack. About 15 percent of imports of sardines not in oil in recent years consisted of sild sardines packed in conventional type quarter cans. Such imports increased almost steadily from less than 100,000 pounds, valued at $31,000, in 1959 to a high of about 6.8 million Compared with the 10-year pounds, valued at $2 million, in 1968. period 1949-58, average annual imports during 1959-68 increased in quantity by close to 30 percent but about doubled in value. Norway has been the principal source of these imports (table 14) and the increase in entries from that country has been due largely, if not entirely, to entries by one concern which until 1962 was a domestic producer, but thereafter shifted to imports for its source of supplies. The increase in imports of all sardines in 1968 compared with 1967 is due in part to above average entries in anticipation of the longshoreman's strike at the east and gulf coasts that began at the end of December 1968. 1/ Sardines in oil Imports of sardines in oil, which formerly accounted for the bulk of all sardine imports, have since 1963 made up less than half of the total. Annual imports of in-oil sardines in the period 1959-68 have fluctuated between a high of about 33 million pounds, valued at $13.4 million, in 1962 and a low of 20 million pounds, valued at $9.6 million in 1963. Thereafter, the imports (principally from Norway) increased without interruption to 28.4 million pounds, valued at $13.2 million in 1968 (table 16). At that level, which was the second highest in annual volume but the highest by annual value, imports were 34 percent larger in quantity and 61 percent larger in value than in 1959. For the decade beginning with 1959 the average level of imports was 17 percent larger by quantity and 40 percent higher in value than in the decade preceding. Most of the imports of sardines in oil consist of smoked sardines or pilchards and thus differ materially from domestic output. The Transcript of hearing, p. 499. distribution of imports of sardines in oil, by type of pack, is shown About 90 percent of the imports in 1964-68 were of types not produced at all domestically or produced in only limited volume. By far the greater part of the imports consist of sardines valued for duty purposes at over 30 cents per pound, and most of the remainder are valued over 23 cents but not over 30 cents (tables 18 and 19). About four-fifths of the volume of imports in 1964-68 were sardines valued at over 30 cents per pound (table 19). Imported sardines in this value bracket usually are priced higher than the bulk of the sardines of the type produced in the United States. About 70 percent of such imports consisted of smoked silds and brislings (included in table 19) for which Norway has been the predominant supplier. An additional 26 percent consisted of skinless or boneless sardines |