After a long period of export difficulties, from September until now, seafood products, especially pangasius, have shown signs of recovery.
According to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), currently exported pangasius products have a positive growth rate of 9% compared to the same period last year.
By the end of October, the export turnover of this product had reached over 1.5 billion USD. To prepare supplies for the year-end holiday season, the two main markets, the US and China, have begun to increase demand.
For the Chinese market, with geographical advantages, our country’s pangasius products can compete better and can especially gain a higher market share in the fresh and chilled seafood segment for domestic consumption. location of this billion-people market.
Pangasius export expectations at the end of the year
Not only traditional markets, markets of countries participating in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) also recovered. Although pangasius exports have not yet overcome all difficulties, this is also a sign of promise in the last months of the year.
Although in the first week of November, pangasius export activities were somewhat quiet. But businesses and associations still expect the market to stabilize in the coming months.
Mr. Phan Hoang Duy – Deputy General Director of Can Tho Seafood Import-Export Joint Stock Company said: “It is expected that by the end of November to December there will be good signals from the Chinese market. As for the second largest market, of the Vietnamese pangasius industry is the US market, they have a special seafood consumption season that is also pangasius, so from early February to April every year is the Wool Festival season in this market, when importers We will take advantage of this period to import. The company also hopes that the market will change and have many positive changes.”
Mr. Duong Nghia Quoc – Chairman of the Vietnam Pangasius Association said: “The remaining two months also have many signals, orders for some markets such as China and the US have increased compared to previous quarters, meaning increased. Negative growth is gradually decreasing. There are positive signs for export markets at the end of this year as well as in the first quarter of 2024.”
Currently, pangasius exports have bright spots, especially in the CPTPP market. According to statistics from the Vietnam Pangasius Association, many markets have positive double-digit growth such as Canada, Mexico, and Japan, reaching levels from 16% to 75%.
However, according to businesses, to clear the market and revive the pangasius industry, it is necessary to focus on many aspects.
Mr. Ong Hang Van – Deputy General Director of Truong Giang Seafood Company said: “The CPTPP market must work harder on communication so they know more about pangasius. Another important point is that we must change How to raise and breed fish, low density farming, disease prevention so that it can grow quickly, and lower the price of pangasius to be able to compete with other white fish fish”.
Our country’s pangasius products are exported to more than 150 markets around the world with a turnover in 2022 reaching 2.44 billion USD. Focusing on improving quality and value in the pangasius production and processing chain is expected to help the pangasius industry reach its export target of 2 billion USD this year.
Improve production to facilitate export of pangasius
Faced with strict market requirements on food quality, safety and hygiene and competitive prices, the pangasius industry is focusing on many solutions to improve the production, farming, processing and export supply chain. This is an indispensable condition to take advantage of opportunities and best exploit the export potential and strong seafood industry of the region.
Despite having a 300-hectare raw material area and investing in a fish food processing factory with a capacity of 450 tons/day, Dai Thanh Seafood Co., Ltd. still suffered losses due to a sharp decline in exports. With the hope that the market can recover, businesses are focusing on cost reduction efforts to lower export prices.
“The Board of Directors is determined to review all costs that we can reduce, to provide customers with good prices as well as good quality,” Mr. Hang Quoc Dinh – Head of Sales, Thuy Co., Ltd. Dai Thanh said.
Statistics as of the end of October showed that the area of new pangasius farming in the Mekong Delta was more than 5,300 hectares. This number has nearly doubled compared to the new farming area of the same period last year. Once export is favorable, the farming area will likely expand further. The need for quality breeds, ensuring they meet the regulatory standards of importing countries, is of paramount concern.
Mr. Duong Nghia Quoc – Chairman of the Vietnam Pangasius Association said: “We also propose that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development direct specialized agencies such as the Institute of Aquaculture No. How can the province deploy and have enough resources to ensure the production of breeds that meet standards for the Mekong Delta’s pangasius supply chain?”
Commodity regulations of pangasius importing countries require increasingly high requirements in the supply chain from fish fingerlings to processing processes that meet safety and quality standards. The source of good, disease-free fish seeds also practically improves investment efficiency. The competitive advantage of exporting pangasius products will be even better promoted.
