Tra fish exports worth $828m in first half

CAN THO — Viet Nam tra fish exports were worth US$828.6 million in the first half of this year, the Association of Seafood Producers and Exporters has reported.

It represents an increase of 27 per cent year-on-year, while volume was up 4.9 per cent.

The average export price in June was $2.79 a kilogramme compared to $2.15 a year earlier.

Exports to the US have rocketed this year, nearly doubling to more than $118 million by June 15.

Exports to South American countries and ASEAN members were also sharply up, including a 137 per cent rise in shipments to Brazil, and 42 per cent to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines.

Speaking at a meeting held in Can Tho last Friday, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Vu Van Tam said the production and consumption of tra in the first half had exceeded targets. Tam attributed this to the sector’s focus on quality rather than quantity, the improving global image of Vietnamese tra, and the close co-operation between farmers and processors.

By the end of June the area under tra fish farms had risen by 385ha year-on-year to 3,980ha. Of this, 1,933ha have been harvested, yielding 597,324 tonnes.

The price of tra remained high in the first half at VND23,000-29,500 a kilogramme, the Directorate of Fisheries said.

However, since May an abundant harvest has pushed down prices by VND3,000-5,000.

Duong Ngoc Minh, deputy chairman of VASEP, said it cost farmers who did not need to borrow – and those processors who also raised fish – around VND20,000 to produce a kilogramme.

For farmers without financial resources of their own, the cost rose to around VND24,000 due to the high loan interest rates and inputs they bought on credit, he said.

Farmers should become members of tra co-operatives, buy feed directly from producers, and tie up with processors to ensure they sell their harvest so that they can reduce costs by 15-20 per cent, he added. — VNS

http://vietnamnews.vnagency.com.vn/Economy/213670/Tra-fish-exports-worth-828m-in-first-half.html