October 5, 2007

 

EU now accounts for a quarter of Vietnam's seafood exports

 

 

The EU has overtaken the US and Japan to become  Vietnam's largest seafood importer, accounting for 24.4 percent of Vietnam's total seafood exports.

 

In the past eight months, Vietnam shipped 175,400 tonnes of seafood to the EU at a cost of 586 million USD, increases of 24.5 percent and 29.2 percent, respectively, over the same period last year.

 

Nguyen Viet Manh, Deputy Head of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development's International Cooperation Department, said the EU would continue to remain as the biggest importer of Vietnamese seafood.

 

Vietnamese seafood is exported to 26 out of the 27 EU member countries.

 

The Association of Seafood Exporters and Processors said products from "tra" and 'basa" catfish are the most favoured by EU consumers.

 

In the past eight months, the EU imported around 112,000 tonnes of 'tra' and 'basa' products valued at US$ 312 million from Vietnam.

 

Former Ambassador and Head of the European Commission Delegation to Vietnam Markus Cornaro said "many Europeans prefer Vietnamese seafood" at his last press briefing during his working term in Vietnam  .

 

Apart from 'tra' and 'basa' products, Europeans also consume shrimp and molluscs imported from Vietnam, said the EC official.

 

To increase the quality of products to meet the strict requirements of the EU market, Vietnamese seafood processors have invested heavily in renewing technologies, while closely monitoring the operation of raw material suppliers.

 

At present, only 0.1 percent of Vietnamese seafood is placed under warnings by the EU, 10 times less than that in 2005.

 

Close to 245 Vietnamese businesses are currently qualified to export products to the EU and 25 others are waiting for licences from the market.  This year, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is set to rake in seafood export earnings of US$3.6 billion, US$300 million higher than last year.