December 21, 2005

Vietnamese seafood exports to Japan over US$600 million this year

Vietnamese seafood exports to Japan reached over US$600 million so far this year, according to Nguyen Trung Dung, commercial counsellor at the Vietnamese embassy in Tokyo.

Dung said Vietnamese shrimp is expected to maintain a 23 to 25 percent market share in Japan for the next few years.  He added that Japan is the top importer of Vietnamese shrimp for the second year in a row.

According to Vietnam's Ministry of Fisheries, Japanese authorities would conduct 30 random checks for antibiotic residue levels in Vietnamese shrimp imports, between now and Mar 31, 2006.

Meanwhile, the ministry is taking several steps to raise safety standards of the country's aquatic products, so as to meet increasing foreign demand.

The ministry said aquaculture communities would be developed nationwide. Production processes, from selection of breeds, feed and medicines to processing and exports, would be closely monitored, the ministry added.