August 23, 2010

Vietnam's Mekong Delta to harvest 60,300 tonnes white-leg shrimp

Vietnam cities and provinces in the Mekong Delta region are expected to harvest 60,300 tonnes of white-leg shrimp from 8,800 hectares under aquaculture this year, local news reported August 20.

The output is estimated to rise 4.3 times against the previous year due to an increase of 2.5 times in area.

The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) has forecasted that Vietnam's white-leg shrimp export volume will triple a year earlier to 150,000 tonnes, and export volume will double to between US$500 million and US$600 million in 2010.

White-leg shrimp breeding is estimated to profit local farmers around VND150 million (US$7,708) per hectare, much higher than the profits of VND60 million-VND80 million (US$3,083-4,111) earned from prawn breeding.