Chinese officials have been in Brunei this week to sign protocols easing import rules for wild-caught seafood.
The move opens the door for more seafood shipments from Brunei to China, even as Chinese aquaculture investment picks up in the Southeast Asian nation. China accounted for over one-third of the 1,763 metric tons of seafood exported from Brunei in 2018, up from 1,209 metric tons in 2017.
China wants to see more seafood imported from Brunei, said Zou Zhiwu, a vice minister at the Chinese General Administration of Customs who signed a protocol on biosecurity inspection, quarantine, veterinary, and sanitary requirements. Brunei is a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which has a free trade deal with China.
One notable Chinese firm with significant operations in Brunei is Guangxi Hiseaton Foods. The company grows shrimp as well as golden pompano, grouper, barramundi, and cobia at a 200-hectare offshore site in the Meragang region of Brunei. Hiseaton also has a 22-hectare hatchery site and a halal-certified processing plant in Brunei and exports to North America and to Australia.
