Mainly exporting raw and frozen products

The project to develop the seafood processing industry for the period 2021-2030 sets the goal of developing modern, effective and sustainable seafood processing, meeting the needs and regulations of the consumer market; improving competitiveness and continuing to integrate deeply into the global value chain; striving to make Vietnam a seafood processing center and rank in the top 5 countries in the world by 2030. Striving to have the growth rate of processed seafood output reach over 6%/year by 2030. The proportion of export value of value-added processed aquatic products averages over 40% (of which: shrimp reaches 60%, pangasius reaches 10%, tuna reaches 70%, squid and octopus reaches 30%, other aquatic products reach 30%). The value of seafood processing for domestic consumption reaches VND 40,000 - 45,000 billion. Contributing to the value of seafood export turnover reaching about US$ 14 - 16 billion.

However, besides the results achieved in recent times, Vietnam's seafood export is also facing many difficulties and challenges. To analyse this more clearly, according to the Bureau of Quality, Processing and Market Development (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development), one of the big challenges for Vietnamese seafood exports is unstable raw material sources, high production costs which reduce competitiveness. In addition, Vietnamese seafood must also meet rules of origin, so until now, Vietnamese enterprises have only been able to take advantage of 30% of incentives from FTAs. At the same time, in addition to facing strong competition from China, Thailand, Bangladesh, Indonesia, India..., Vietnamese export seafood also faces technical barriers. and protectionism such as: anti-dumping tax, anti-subsidy tax, regulations on testing chemicals, antibiotics or separate inspection programs, rules of origin, IUU, regulations on SPS and TBT, environment, social responsibility, labour...

Faced with the above difficulties, speaking at a conference on discussing solutions to implement the development project of the seafood processing industry in the 2021-2030 period just held on December 9, Mr. Tran Dinh Luan, Director of the Bureau of Fisheries said that the above project aimed to achieve a leading position in the field of seafood export with the goal of not only increasing production but also focusing on the quality and added value of the product.

However, the implementation of the project of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is also facing some difficulties and limit ations such as the output market for some aquatic products is not stable; Aquatic products are mainly exported by raw and frozen products without any deeply processed foods; The marine farming industry in Khanh Hoa faces many difficulties. In addition, the association of production, processing, and preservation of seafood, especially farmed seafood, is not sustainable.

Seafood export does not only stop at increasing output but also focuses on the quality and added value of the product. Photo: TL

Need strategic solution

As one of the key export industries of Vietnamese seafood, in order to help the pangasius industry overcome difficulties, the representative of the Vietnam Pangasius Association said that two important issues that need to be resolved were product quality control and decrease of production costs to increase competitiveness. Regarding product quality control, the Vietnam Pangasius Association recommended that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and related units must conduct an inspection to protect product quality and reputation of the Vietnamese pangasius industry. Besides strengthening product quality, the important issue that needs to be done to increase the competitiveness of Vietnam's pangasius export was decrease of production costs: decrease of wastage rates, fast growth, decrease of disease, low food ratio. The competitiveness of Vietnamese pangasius products was decreasing when other products in the same segment had lower and lower production prices. Previously, the cost of producing pangasius was only US$ 1 /kg, but now it is US$ 1.2-1.3 /kg, higher than Alaska Pollock fish, the increase cost of food, medicine, gasoline, oil, electricity, water… caused an increase of production costs. Currently, the price of food was about VND 12,000/kg, previously, food accounted for 55-60% of the cost of pangasius production, but now it increased to 70-80%.

In addition, the Vietnam Pangasius Association also proposed that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development should form concentrated pangasius seed production areas, applying the latest scientific and technical achievements to all stages of the farming process (feed, essential materials, harvesting technology…) and processing process to create value-added products for the industry to meet international market demand; promoting competition and restructuring the pangasius industry; diversify products and build the Vietnamese pangasius brand. At the same time, focus on developing key markets (US, EU, China, Asean), negotiate to open potential import markets (Middle East, Central America), and remove Saudi Arabia's import ban …

According to Mr. Truong Dinh Hoe, General Secretary of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), enterprises in the industry should continue to strengthen quality through activities related to international certification. At the same time, focus on issues related to the green economy, in order to build the brand and the ability to promote Vietnamese seafood products in the global market. “The Association recommends that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development direct relevant specialized agencies to promote trade in domestic and foreign markets, especially the Chinese market. This is to find a direction as well as master the market, aiming for sustainable seafood export”, Mr. Hoe suggested.

Director of the Bureau of Fisheries Tran Dinh Luan affirmed that the "key" to achieving the goal of Vietnam's exports reaching US$ 14-16 billion by 2030 required close coordination between export processing enterprises and industry associations. support from the State. “This requires a shift from a focus on quantity to quality and value. This is a big challenge for the whole industry and especially for State management agencies. Increasing deep processing not only helps increase of the product value, but is also an opportunity for Vietnam to dominate the global market”, Mr. Tran Dinh Luan emphasized.