Vietnamese tra (Pangasius) fish may no longer be a leading staple in theglobal market in the near future as it has to compete with other rivalsfor the lion’s share of the market.
According to theMinistry of Industry and Trade, Vietnamese tra fish is increasinglylosing its global competitiveness due to unhealthy competition amongdomestic businesses, anti-dumping lawsuits and poor quality.
Vietnam is struggling to gain the lion’s share of the market as itfaces fierce competition from other regional tra fish producers andprocessors such as Thailand , Cambodia , Laos , the Philippines andIndonesia . These rivals are expanding their aquaculture acreage totake advantage of the industry’s obvious economic prospects.
The Filipino Department of Trade and Industry recently approved a 15.8million USD Pangasius farming project, aiming to earn 23 million USD inexport revenue by 2016.
The Philippines also plansto reserve 270ha of water for Pangasius farming, employ 2,700 workers,and produce 614 tonnes of fillets per month.
Indonesia does not want to lose out to its neighbours and its GeneralDirector in charge of aquaculture under the Ministry of Marine Affairsand Fisheries (MMAF), Slamet Soebjakto, said that like the MekongRiver , the Batanghari River that runs across the central Indonesianprovince of Jambi holds great potential for Pangasius farming. Hesaid his country wants to turn the river into one of its largestaquaculture centres.
Slamet even disclosed Indonesia’s ambitious plan to exploit Indonesia ’s rivers, lakes, reservoirs,ponds and artificial lakes so it will become the world’s largest fishproducer in the future. He said the MMAF has chosen Pangasius as one ofthe key staple products for industrialising Indonesia ’s aquacultureindustry.
Experts say Indonesia ’s potential and fishresources can be compared to those of Vietnam , and if Indonesiatakes full advantage of its transferred technology and local labour, itwill not be long before the country surpasses Vietnam in Pangasiusproduction.
Over the past decade, naturally farmed trafish from the Mekong River Delta has emerged as one of Vietnam ’s keyexport products.
The volume of farmed tra fish hasincreased by 50 times, surpassing 1 million tonnes annually. It has beenexported to 142 countries and territories across the globe, with itsexport value increasing 65 folds and generating 2 percent of Vietnam’s GDP.
The product is part and parcel of Vietnam’s national fisheries development strategy because great amounts can beproduced using only 6,000 ha of water, which is only 1 percent of thatrequired for shrimp farming. It is highly competitive on the globalmarket, creates tens of thousands of jobs, and contributes to thecountry’s economic restructuring, especially in the rural MekongDelta.-VNA