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http://www.asemconnectvietnam.gov.vn/asemvn/asps/news.asp?idnews=6227&tuan=45
Local fisheries are making strong strokes in
new markets, keeping afloat in the face of a drop in sales to the US.
The export value of Vietnamese tra and basa catfish has doubled in
only one year, despite last year's ruling by the US International Trade
Commission that Vietnamese exporters were dumping catfish on the US
market.
Doan Toi, general director of Nam Viet Fish Company (Navico),
Vietnam's biggest catfish exporter, said his company has been running at
100 per cent capacity, recording a 30 per cent year-on-year increase in
export value.
Ngo Phuoc Hau, general director of An Giang Fishery Import and Export
Company (Agifish), said his company's catfish exports will climb to
between 15,000 and 20,000 tons by the end of this year, doubling last
year's figure and up by 2.5 times compared wit h 2002.
Both Toi and Hau, who is also vice chairman of the Vietnam
Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), attributed the
strong growth of their catfish export value to new markets and product
diversification strategies.
They said after the US slapped high tariffs on Vietnamese catfish
producers, exporters sought new markets in Europe and the Middle East.
According to VASEP, catfish production has grown strongly so far this
year, with some 300,000 tons worth $240 million exported to 40 countries
and territories - against 10 last year.
The US accounted for just 15-20 per cent of exports compared to 60-70
per cent last year. Exporters have shifted to European markets like Switzerland,
Belgium, Germany, the UK and France, in addition to new ones in Asia.
"The presence of Vietnamese catfish in many new overseas outlets
has created opportunities for domestic catfish producers to build new
processing plants and employ more local laborers," said Toi.
He said his company has tabled plans to build a $45-million catfish
processing factory in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho.
Navico is aiming for export revenue of $100 million in 2005, a hefty
rise on the $50-60 million tipped for this year and four times the
figure in 2003. "The presence of the 39-hectare plant should go a
long way toward meeting this target," he said.
Its second catfish factory is under construction in An Giang and
should be up and running next month. The $l0-million plant will be able
to process 100,000 tons of fish annually, more than doubling Navico's
current capacity.
However, according to VASEP, the Mekong Delta may face an oversupply
of tra and basa next year as the region's catfish output is rising too
fast.
The region could harvest 430,000-500,000 tons of catfish next year,
above the estimated 300,000 tons that the delta's fish factories can
presently handle.
Vietnam Investment Review has learnt that the Ministry of Fisheries
has launched a program to build a catfish quality control system with
the ultimate goal of building a national brand, "Basa
Vietnam".
The ministry's brand-building program is a push in its effort to
ensure sustainable development, competitiveness and product quality in
the catfish farming sector.
A national conference on the program is set to take place in
December, with government officials, scientists, businesspeople, farmers
and representatives of international cooperation projects taking part.
Source: Vietnam Investment Review 1-7 November 2004
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