Timely catching up with the recovery demand in most markets, and taking advantage of the Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) have helped the export turnover of Vietnam's seafood industry to make a spectacular breakthrough with nearly 11 billion USD in 2022.

2022 is a successful year for Vietnam's seafood industry

Mr. Truong Dinh Hoe - General Secretary of the Association of Seafood Exporters and ProducersVietnam (VASEP) - said: In 2022, the seafood industry has promptly caught up with the strong recovery demand in most markets and used the reserve of raw materials from the end of 2021 to boost production - seafood exports to markets, especially the US, EU and China markets with the average export price increasing by 15-60%. As a result, only by the end of November 2022, the industry's turnover had reached 10.2 billion USD, an increase of nearly 28% compared to the same period in 2021 - early completion of the plan set out for 2022. In which, exports Pangasius still grew strongly by 63% to nearly 2.3 billion USD, shrimp earned over 4 billion USD, up 14%. Tuna is the industry with the second largest growth with 40%, reaching 941 million USD; Squid, octopus also grew strongly by 30% to reach 704 million USD. The figure of over 10 billion USD is the result of strong growth in the first 3 quarters of the year, with favorable market demand, increased export prices,

Especially, after a series of new generation FTAs were signed, seafood is also the product that benefits the most from these FTAs. Therefore, right after the FTAs come into effect, it not only creates opportunities to boost exports, but also helps Vietnam's aquaculture, fishing and seafood processing industries improve management capacity and quality for sustainable development. . It is enterprises' effective use of FTAs that have supported Vietnam's export expansion in six key markets (accounting for 90% of export turnover) namely the US, EU, China, ASEAN, Japan, and Korea. In particular, exports to countries with the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership ( CPTPP ) will grow by 30% in 2022.

In 2023, the seafood industry will face a number of challenges from lack of raw materials for export processing. This comes from the fact that businesses have difficulty in accessing land fund for aquaculture, the condition of farming infrastructure has not been properly developed, the quality of seed... Not to mention, the demand Consumption of markets will slow down due to financial difficulties, making many importers more cautious in signing new contracts.

Mr. Ho Quoc Luc - Chairman of the Board of Directors of Sao Ta Food Joint Stock Company - affirmed: Seafood enterprises cannot stand by difficulties but must find solutions and coping strategies. One of the important solutions is that businesses have to restructure. According to VASEP, in order for the seafood industry to continue to develop and grow steadily in 2023, businesses expect the Government to stabilize the policy of planning land fund for aquaculture and develop more potential farming areas. , in order to ensure the source of raw materials for export processing and increase the competitiveness of Vietnamese seafood. At the same time, there are support measures to stabilize the prices of inputs for aquaculture, especially the prices of feeds and breeds for aquaculture; adjust the USD exchange rate flexibly and appropriately, more beneficial for exports.