Seafood exports set to rise

Seafood exports will top US$4.7 billion this year, an increase of 6.8 per cent over 2009, the Ministry of Industry and Trade has forecast.

The global economic recovery would ease the way for seafood exports, the ministry said, saying that orders from key import markets, like the EU, Japan, and the US would start coming in again.

In addition, agricultural and forestry products exports to Japan would also increase, thanks to lower tariffs under the Viet Nam-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement, it said.

Japan is now the country’s second largest seafood importer after the EU, but it could well become the largest in future, it added.

The recent announcement by Spanish authorities that Vietnamese, tra and basa catfish products met EU food safety and hygiene requirements has created favourable conditions in Spain.

The country is already the leading importer of Vietnamese catfish in the EU, buying 40,000 tonnes a year on average.

The EU, where there is a large demand for frozen fish fillet, frozen shrimp and tuna, spends around $40 billion a year to import seafood, but Viet Nam accounts for just 3 per cent of it with $1.2 billion.

It has set itself a target of increasing this figure to $1.4 billion this year.

The ministry said exports to the US would also increase sharply if Vietnamese seafood exporters focus on building modern storage systems, promoting their brands, strengthening advertising and marketing and producing high-quality goods.

But the seafood industry continues to face many challenges like trade barriers erected by import countries, difficulty in obtaining raw materials and low productivity.

Shortage

The lack of co-operation between farmers and processors and shortage of quality human resources also hamper the development of the sector.

Under new European regulations, for instance, all seafood imported into the EU must have a certificate of legitimacy plus documents on the origin of products.

The raw-material shortage has forced most seafood processing plants to operate at just 70 per cent of their capacity.

To ensure adequate supply of raw materials for processing for export, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said the country may have to import them at a cost of $200 million a year.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Luong Le Phuong called on companies to invest more in raw-material zones and improve their processing technologies and packaging.

Viet Nam currently exports seafood to 138 nations and territories, including Italy, Norway, Russia, Australia, and ASEAN member countries.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News

Tags: Vietnam Seafood, Vietnam seafood exports