Business

Vietnam earned $6 billion from seafood exports this year, representing a yearly rise of 20 per cent, exceeding its target of $5.7 billion, according to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).

Workers of Thong Thuan Seafood Co Ltd in central coastal Ninh Thuan province make sushi for export to Japan.

The country's total seafood output reached 5.2 million tonnes, up 1.4 per cent over last year while the total aquaculture area increased by 2.5 per cent to 1,093ha, surging 2.5 per cent year-on-year, the association said.

"2011 is the first year we implemented the seafood development strategy from now to 2020. Thus, this year's impressive export result shows the prospects for our fishery industry," Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development cum head of the General Department of Fisheries Vu Van Tam said.

The seafood industry would likely farm and catch 5.35 million tonnes of products, and earn $6.5 billion in exports in 2012, the ministry said, attributing the prediction to the growing demand for seafood products in the global market and slumping fishery supplies of some other exporters.

It was a good time for the industry to restructure with a focus on updating advanced technologies and improving production capacities, experts said.

Earlier, VASEP announced an export turnover target of $10 billion in 2020 with the aim to transform the country into one of largest seafood traders in the world.

To reach its target, the industry must overcome challenges such as a lack of raw material for processing while promoting product quality, food hygiene and safety, competitive ability and the development of the export market, the association said.

Despite encouraging export results this year, the domestic processors currently face a serious lack of raw material, forcing them to spend $500 million on imports to meet processing demands, it said.

To solve the problem, the industry planned to better manage aquaculture in terms of food quality and hygiene alongside the application of modern technology to increase the capacity and quality of raw materials to reduce costs and develop value-added export products.

Co-operation with foreign partners in the exploitation and storage of raw materials in foreign countries before shipment to Vietnam for processing should be encouraged, it said.

Regarding the development of the export market, the association proposed the government implement additional trade promotion programmes in support of local seafood export products while reducing administrative procedures which increase costs.