Moroccan Fishmonger Stirs Controversy with Drastically Discounted Sardines

Abdelilah, "the conqueror of intermediaries", offers fish on his social networks at prices defying all competition: 5 dirhams per kilo against 10 to 15 dirhams in the cities of Casablanca and Rabat. With his discounted prices, he is attracting many consumers to his store called "The Port of Marrakech". Some merchants have not failed to denounce this unfair practice of the young fishmonger, arguing that he is selling frozen or poor quality fish. Others see in this maneuver of the young man a way to create a buzz.

But what is really behind the price of sardines at 5 dirhams, in this context of a general rise in prices as the month of Ramadan approaches? Would these low-priced sardines pose a risk to consumers? In any case, the unfair practice of the Marrakech fishmonger has found imitators in Casablanca where the price of a kilo of sardines has dropped from 20 dirhams to 18 or even 15 dirhams between Monday, February 24 and Tuesday, February 25.

Kamal Sabri, president of the Chamber of Maritime Fisheries of the North Atlantic, confided to Médias24 that the Marrakech fishmonger can indeed sell sardines at 5 dirhams per kilo, since he buys his own merchandise and takes care of the transportation. The initiative of the young man is to be welcomed and encouraged, adds Abderrahmane Elyazidi, coordinator of the Fishing and Sustainable Development Collective, stressing that this is the ordinary sales circuit.

"I am not currently informed of the route this fishmonger is taking, but given the current context, I assume it is a route that can provide low-priced fish. This is the fish that comes from the informal market," explains Professor Mohammed Naji, a researcher-teacher at the Hassan II Agronomic and Veterinary Institute in Rabat, specifying that these fish are bought "directly from small fishermen, who use traditional boats and are not allowed to fish for sardines according to Moroccan regulations." "These fish are not subject to taxes or duties and can be sold at a lower price," he concludes.