Farmers in Mexico receive US$ 100 per kilo for shelled, fresh abalone. The customers are buyers in Asia, especially Japan, as well as restaurants in the US. Abalone as a main course costs US$ 50 in high-class American restaurants, and the portion of pure flesh weighs less than 100 grams. These restaurants pay Mexican shellfish farmers US$ 35 per kilo for fresh abalone with shells.
US$ 600 million worldwide value Around 10,000 tonnes of free-range abalone (including shell weight) is harvested globally every year.
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Abalone: World’s most expensive shellfish
Santiago, Chile: Abalone is the world’s most expensive shellfish, fetching up to US$ 700 per kilo when sold dried and without its shell in specialist shops in Asia.
5 November 2002 6:00 GMT
Updated
10 July 2012 5:03 GMT