Seafood exports maintain growth rate and key position

With the country's seafood export turnover reaching approximately 7 billion USD, an increase of more than 10.7%, 2013 was recognized as a successful year for the seafood industry when it maintained the growth rate and position of key export products in the international market.

Assessing the situation in 2014, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Vu Van Tam said that market fluctuations, epidemics, and natural disasters continue to impact the aquaculture industry. Therefore, the industry needs to have drastic solutions right from the first days of the new year.

The US is still the largest import market.

According to the Directorate of Fisheries - Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, 2013 was a year of unfavorable weather, many storms, and rising gasoline prices, which greatly affected fishing activities. However, the total output of exploited seafood in the country is estimated at 6.05 million tons, up 2.1% compared to 2012; of which, the output of exploited products reached 2.71 million tons, up 2.2%; the output of aquaculture reached 3.34 million tons, up 2%.

In 2013, the US continued to be Vietnam's largest seafood import market, accounting for 21.8% of total seafood export turnover.

The most prominent feature of seafood exports is the unexpected rise of white-leg shrimp. According to a synthesis of 30 brackish water shrimp farming provinces/cities nationwide, the white-leg shrimp farming area in 2013 reached more than 66 thousand hectares, an increase of 57% compared to 2012, with an output of 280 thousand tons, an increase of 50%.

With these impressive figures, for the first time, whiteleg shrimp has surpassed black tiger shrimp in both output and export value. Thanks to that, Vietnam has compensated for the decline in shrimp production in many countries due to disease, becoming the third largest shrimp producer in the world.

Vietnam's shrimp export value in 2013 reached 2.5 billion USD, an increase of more than 33% compared to 2012 and accounting for 44% of the country's seafood export value. Shrimp became Vietnam's main export item in 2013.

Processing canned tuna at KTC Food Kien Giang Company.

According to Mr. Vo Thanh Do, Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture, Forestry, Fisheries and Salt Production, the above results were achieved because Vietnam had planned the farming areas, controlled the breeds well, traced the origin of the breeds, and regularly inspected the shrimp farming areas. In addition, the main shrimp exporting country in the region, Thailand, suffered from widespread disease and decreased production.

China has also been affected by disease and floods, while this is a market with a large demand for shrimp. Therefore, although Vietnam's shrimp output has not increased much, these factors have caused shrimp prices on the world market to increase by 20-30%.

However, in addition to the growth of shrimp products, some of Vietnam's main seafood export products such as basa fish, tuna... showed signs of a slight decrease. For example, basa fish decreased by about 5% in value and output. The reason is partly due to the long-term decline in export output to the EU market due to trade barriers.

In addition, Vietnamese businesses are also competing on price, causing the export price of basa fish to decrease. On the other hand, the two main export markets, the US and the EU, have also put forward increasingly strict requirements on standards and the environment. Many pangasius farming areas have revealed unresolved conflicts.

The above difficulties have caused the area of ​​pangasius farming to decrease by 17.5%, the output only reached 1.15 million tons, down 7.6% compared to 2012. Along with pangasius, black tiger shrimp is also subject to decrease in both area and output.

Need for synchronous solutions

Assessing the situation in 2014, Deputy Minister Vu Van Tam said that the market, epidemics, and natural disasters will continue to impact the fisheries sector this year. Therefore, the sector needs to continue forecasting and have effective solutions to cope. In particular, it is necessary to take advantage of the State's policies; especially policies on restructuring the fisheries sector. These are positive impacts that the fisheries sector can take advantage of to overcome difficulties and develop.

Shrimp is still identified as the main product in 2014, with the planned area of ​​black tiger shrimp nationwide estimated at 590,000 hectares, with an output of 270,000 tons; white-leg shrimp 80,000 hectares, with an output of 290,000 tons. Therefore, this product will be strictly controlled for stable and sustainable development.

Mr. Tran Dinh Luan, Deputy Director of the Department of Animal Health, recommended that brackish water shrimp farming localities urgently develop disease prevention plans, regularly monitor and forecast the situation, and develop a stocking schedule for the next crops to proactively manage diseases and ensure economic efficiency for the entire farming season.

Director of the Aquaculture Research Institute II, Mr. Nguyen Van Hao, said that shrimp farmers need to adjust their crop calendar appropriately; at the same time, manage the quality of the seed, proactively prevent diseases by applying technical solutions throughout the farming process to detect diseases early and have appropriate treatment directions.

Forecasting that white-leg shrimp output in 2014 will increase by 20% compared to 2013, Mr. Truong Dinh Hoe, General Secretary of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), emphasized that to maintain the market, strengthening the management of banned antibiotics in aquaculture, especially shrimp farming, will be very necessary.

Mr. Hoe recommends that farmers should regularly update the list of banned antibiotics and disseminate it to farmers and businesses; strengthen control and prevent the injection of impurities; at the same time, promote diplomatic relations, seek opportunities to negotiate to resolve or reduce trade barriers from import markets.

Shrimp seed production enterprises believe that central and local management agencies need to step up and effectively implement the work of monitoring, inspecting, managing and strictly handling illegal business units, creating healthy development and competition among production units, in order to provide high-quality and effective seed sources for farmers.

Deputy Director General of the Directorate of Fisheries, Nguyen Huy Dien emphasized the trade promotion for aquatic products, especially for tra fish in 2014. Accordingly, in addition to traditional markets such as the EU, two new potential markets, China and India, need to be promoted. In addition, tra fish needs to be strongly developed in the domestic market because in reality, from urban to rural areas, this product rarely appears.

Besides, "The Directorate of Fisheries will also vigorously promote the building of brands for Vietnamese seafood products to increase export value, helping the industry develop more sustainably," Mr. Dien emphasized.

According to Vietnam Fisheries