Illustrative image (Source: VNA)Hanoi (VNA) - Minister of Agriculture andRural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong has called for more efforts to push aquaticproduct export turnover to 10 billion USD in 2019.
Addressing a recent conference to review the sector’s performance in 2018 andlaunch tasks for 2019, Minister Cuong asked the sector to increase its productionvalue by 4.25 percent with total productivity of 7.9 million tonnes.
Besides, the Directorate of Fisheries was requested to focus on implementingthe Law on Fisheries and developing the sector in line with planning.
In 2018, export turnover of aquatic products hit 9 billion USD, a year-on-year increaseof 8.4 percent.
Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Phung Duc Tien saidVietnam recorded its highest fishery production ever in 2018 with 7.74 milliontonnes, up 7.2 percent year-on-year.
Export revenue of tra (pangasius) fish saw breakthroughgrowth, hitting 2.26 billion USD, up 26.4 percent.
Exports of seafood also strongly increased, with tuna shipments reaching 675million USD (up 13.9 percent), other fish groups - 1.52 billion USD (up 15.5percent), and the molluscous group – 785 million USD (up 9.1 percent).
Tran Dinh Luan, Vice General Director of the Directorate of Fisheries said Vietnam’saquaculture area in 2018 was 1.3 million hectares, up 6 percent.
2018 was a prosperous year for the Vietnamese tra fish industry,with its cultivation area hitting 5,400 ha, up 3.3 percent compared to 2017.
Farming areas and processing plants of tra fish in Vietnam have received praisefrom inspection delegations from the US Department ofCommerce, making it easier for the products to access the US market.
For the shrimp industry, in the context of a sharp drop in material shrimpprice in late May, the Directorate of Fisheries recommended shrimp farmerscomply with technical standard and took to value chains to reduce risks.
Regarding offshore fishing, Vietnam has 95,847 fishing ships, with 98.6 percentwooden-shell fishing vessels. A total 82 fish ports are operating in 27 coastalprovinces and cities nationwide, while 58 storm shelter areas were built in 24provinces and cities with maximum capacity of 42,464 fishing boats. - VNA
VNA
