Vietnamese shrimp exporter Fimex (Sao Ta) saw its export volumes and value rise in April despite impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The company produced 1,196 metric tons (MT) of shrimp from its processing plants in the month, up 10 percent from April 2019.
It exported 990 MT of shrimp last month, up 7 percent year-on-year.
Fimex said in a statement earlier this month it earned USD 11.2 million (EUR 10.4 million) in export value in the month, 15 percent higher year-on-year.
This month, the company will finish stocking 120 ponds at its newly-built farms in the Mekong Delta. By the end of May, more than 200 ponds at the existing farms in Soc Trang Province will be harvested, supplying material to the company’s three operating processing plants, it said.
Fimex’s Chairman Ho Quoc Luc told SeafoodSource this week he was not surprised by the company’s business results in April. Fimex was able to boost exports because it has already built a system of customers who were working well during the pandemic. But things are likely to change as uncertainty remains in the global market due to the deadly virus outbreak, he said.
Luc said in early April that the company has maintained normal operations and already had sufficient orders for the second quarter. Fimex’s relationship with its customers has become closer than ever during the pandemic, which helps the company to quickly understand the consumption situation in the market.
Fimex managed to gain a net profit of VND 40 billion (USD 1.7 million, EUR 1.6 million) in the first quarter despite having to face numerous difficulties, it said.
In the first quarter of 2020, the company exported shrimp worth USD 30.7 million (EUR 28.4 million), 5 percent lower year-on-year.
Fimex, headquartered in Soc Trang, has its own farms on 190 hectares that supply material to its processing plants in the region. The company also buys shrimp from local farmers for processing.
Photo courtesy of Fimex
