Seafood exporters in the Mekong Delta region were brought together at a seminar to be updated on the regulations of foreign markets in 2014, which will help them effectively iron out any difficulties.
Chairman of the Vietnam Fisheries Association Nguyen Viet Thang said the seafood sector has reaped growth in both volume and value over the past two decades. In 2013, it brought home 6.7 billion USD from selling 6 million tonnes abroad. Vietnamese aquatic products are being sold in 150 nations and territories, he noted.
However, he cited more technical and trade barriers, and stricter demands from foreign markets as major challenges that require more special attention from State-run management agencies, seafood businesses and associations.
Apart from weather disadvantages, the industry continues to suffer from the illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUU) standards set by the European Commission and the seafood safety barrier in the Customs Union of Russia, Belarus and Kazastan.
The US ’s anti-dumping taxes on imported Vietnamese tra fish and shrimp, and its new regulations in 2014 Farm Bill, have all posed a number of difficulties for the sector.
Therefore, local breeders and businesses need to be fully aware of these challenges and be able to meet the regulations from foreign importers to make inroads into these markets, Thang said.
The association presented in brief the non-tariff barriers and solutions in the field and highlighted the need to increase added value in the tra fish supply chain. It also called for more technology investment, the strengthening of traditional markets and expansion to new ones.
VNA
