Tuna exports are increasingly competitive

According to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), in the first three months of 2013, Vietnam's tuna exports have shifted from frozen steamed tuna loins to low-value canned tuna products.

Therefore, Indonesia has surpassed Vietnam to become the country with the third largest tuna export value to the US market, while the volume of tuna exported to the US is 1,582 tons lower than Vietnam.

According to statistics from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), US tuna imports in the first 3 months of 2013 have recovered, with import volume reaching more than 62.4 thousand tons, worth more than 381 million USD. Among the top 5 countries exporting tuna to the US market, Thailand continues to be the largest tuna supplier with more than 46% of the total US tuna import volume, followed by the Pacific Islands countries, Indonesia, Vietnam and Ecuador.

In terms of product structure, except for Indonesia, the largest tuna export product of the remaining 3 countries to the US is canned skipjack tuna (with much lower value than frozen cooked tuna loin).

The shift in the structure of exported products to the US as above has posed an important problem for Vietnamese tuna exports, which is competition with other countries such as Thailand, Pacific island countries, Ecuador and the Philippines.

According to VASEP, the US tuna market is very sensitive to canned tuna products. Therefore, the best solution is to quickly find ways to improve the quality of our existing raw materials to maintain the reputation and value of Vietnamese tuna in the US market as well as other markets around the world.

According to (NNVN) - LC