November 27, 2006

Vietnam's seafood exports rise 25 percent so far this year

Vietnam's seafood exports had jumped 25 percent to US$3.08 billion in the first 11 months, going past the full year's target, thanks to strong growth in global prices,  the Ministry of Fisheries reported.

Both traditional markets like China, the US, the EU and Japan, and some new ones like the Middle East, Eastern Europe, Africa, and South America had been major markets.

Vietnam's drive to base the reputation of its seafood on quality, and the country's trade promotion activities, together with improved capability to forecast prices and export demand seems to be paying off.

However, the ministry also voiced concerns about trade restrictions and closer scrutiny of its shipments.

For example, both Japan and Russia have decided to conduct tests on future shipments, while a row with the US over shrimp tariffs and bonds remains unresolved. There has also been grumblings in the US over the use of banned chemicals in Vietnamese shrimps.

This has sparked a call for the nation's fisheries to conduct more vigorous testing of its shipments on the part of the processors and stricter punishment for farmers who use banned chemicals as growth promoters. 

Despite these challenges, shrimp prices would continue to increase, fuelled by increasing exports to the US and Japan, the ministry said.

Vietnam also plans to expand its aquaculture acreage by 2010 to 1.1 million hectares from 980,000 hectares now, with output topping 2.1 million tonnes from 1.5 million tonnes now.