Processing tuna products for export at the factory of Ba Hai JSC. VNA/VNS Photo

HCM CITY – The exports of Việt Nam’s aquatic product posted positive growth in the first quarter of this year, bringing hope for the entire seafood industry, including processed tuna products.

According to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), canned tuna exports in the reviewed period surged 53% year-on-year, bagging over 196 million USD, a year-on-year increase of 21%.

Nguyên Hà, VASEP's tuna market expert, said that this year, Vietnamese tuna exporters have expanded export markets right from the beginning of the year. In the first quarter of this year, tuna products were shipped to more than 80 markets, compared to 70 markets in the same period last year.

Tuna exports to the US and the EU declined, but the remaining markets saw high growth. Especially, in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) markets, tuna exports continued to grow. Notably, the shipments to Canada and Chile rose 146% and 116%, respectively.

Statistics from the International Trade Centre (ITC) showed that Vietnam is the third largest tuna supplier for Canada in 2023, after Thailand and Italy.

Last year, Canada's tuna imports from major suppliers decreased substantially due to the fact that in recent years, Canadian consumers have reduced their consumption of aquatic products, including tuna. They tend to switch to protein sources with lower prices.

However, it is expected that Việt Nam's tuna exports to Canada will recover because the North American country's aquatic product consumption demand is forecast to increase in the next five years, according to the VASEP representative.

In Europe, Portugal is the sixth biggest importer of Vietnamese tuna among the EU countries with its import turnover reaching more than US$220,000 in the first quarter of this year, twice as much as the same period last year. Although the figure is still modest, it signals a bright future for the export of Vietnamese tuna to this market.