Seafood exports set to rise in Vietnam this year

 

 

Vietnamese seafood exports will top US$4.7 billion this year, an increase of 6.8% over 2009, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MIT) has forecast.

 

According to the ministry, the global economic recovery would ease the way for seafood exports, saying that orders from key import markets, like the EU, Japan, and the US would start coming in again.

 

In addition, agricultural and forestry products exports to Japan would also increase, thanks to lower tariffs under the Vietnam-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement, it said. Japan is now the country's second largest seafood importer after the EU, but it could well become the largest in future.

 

The recent announcement by Spanish authorities that Vietnamese, tra and basa catfish products met EU food safety and hygiene requirements has created favourable conditions in Spain.

 

The country is already the leading importer of Vietnamese catfish in the EU, buying 40,000 tonnes a year on average.

 

The EU, where there is a large demand for frozen fish fillet, frozen shrimp and tuna, spends around US$40 billion a year to import seafood, but Vietnam accounts for just 3% of it worth US$1.2 billion.

 

It has set itself a target of increasing this figure to US$1.4 billion this year.

 

MIT said exports to the US would also increase sharply if Vietnamese seafood exporters focus on building modern storage systems, promoting their brands, strengthening advertising and marketing and producing high-quality goods.

 

However, the seafood industry continues to face many challenges like trade barriers erected by import countries, difficulty in obtaining raw materials and low productivity.

 

The lack of co-operation between farmers and processors and shortage of quality human resources also hamper the development of the sector. Under new European regulations, for instance, all seafood imported into the EU must have a certificate of legitimacy plus documents on the origin of products.

 

The raw-material shortage has forced most seafood processing plants to operate at just 70% of their capacity.

 

To ensure adequate supply of raw materials for processing for export, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) said the country may have to import them at a cost of US$200 million a year.

 

MARD deputy minister Luong Le Phuong urged companies to invest more in raw-material zones and improve their processing technologies and packaging.

 

Vietnam currently exports seafood to 138 nations and territories, including Italy, Norway, Russia, Australia, and ASEAN member countries.