December 18, 2003

Swiss Companies Indicate Interest in Vietnam Catfish

Several major Swiss companies have indicated interest in procuring Vietnamese catfish. The six firms, which include Eurogroup, Co-op, Sippo, Binca, Seafood and Marioult, have all recently visited Vietnam and praised the farmers for their technological methods.

The An Giang Fisheries Import and Export Joint Stock Company (Agifish) in the Cuu Long River Delta provided the Swiss group with information on tra and ba sa fish and other aquatic products raised in the province.

An Agifish official said the visit came at a propitious time since fisheries were looking at other markets after the US accused Vietnam of dumping catfish on the US market.

After losing a lawsuit in June filed by the US, Vietnam became subject to US tariffs of between 37 - 64 %.

The loss was a serious setback for the catfish industry, and led to difficulties for tens of thousands of farmers in the Delta, particularly in An Giang Province.

Experts from the Ministry of Fisheries said the development of new markets would help fishermen from becoming too reliant on the US market, which now accounts for less than 50% of catfish exports.