Exporting to the EU: A new "bridge" for Vietnamese seafood.
“The Vietnam Export Distribution Center in Belgium not only facilitates the entry of Vietnamese seafood into this market of 11 million people but also serves as a bridge to the EU market,” said Mr. Bruno Angelet, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Belgium to Vietnam, during a meeting with Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh.
“The Vietnam Export Distribution Center in Belgium not only facilitates the entry of Vietnamese seafood into this market of 11 million people but also serves as a bridge to the EU market,” said Mr. Bruno Angelet, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Belgium to Vietnam, during a meeting with Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh.
In recent years, Belgium has consistently been one of Vietnam's key export markets in the EU. Since 2005, Vietnam's export turnover to Belgium has increased significantly. In 2012, Vietnam earned $1.44 billion from this market, the highest amount in many years.
Belgium also acts as a bridge for Vietnamese goods exported to the EU market, as it is considered a major distribution center for imported goods in Europe. A large portion of goods imported into Belgium are re-exported, so through the Belgian market, businesses can gain greater access to other markets in the European region.
With these advantages, Mr. Bruno Angelet said that Belgium has recently been working with the Vietnam Association of Seafood Processing and Export (VASEP) to find a location and plan the construction of a distribution center for Vietnamese exports in Belgium, located at the port of Zeebrugge.
Belgium chose seafood as a distribution item through this center because, in recent years, it has been one of the fastest-growing export items from Vietnam to the EU. The EU market is currently one of the three largest seafood import markets for Vietnam, alongside the US and Japan. In 2012, seafood exports to the EU reached US$1.13 billion. To achieve this positive result, the Vietnamese seafood industry, in addition to product management and the application of VietGAP standards, has also strictly implemented EU regulations on quality control and food safety in seafood production.
According to Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh, Vietnam hopes that Belgium will continue to research and support the project. Vietnam will also continue to research to identify truly strong export products to be transshipped into EU markets through the center.
According to (Vietnam Fisheries)-LC
