The export value of canned tuna from Vietnam to the European Union slid in the first eight months of this year, the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) said in a statement Friday, 18 October.
The country exported canned tuna worth USD 23.87 million (EUR 21.42 million) between January and August this year, down 11.8 percent year-on-year.
In the E.U., Germany was the largest buyer of canned tuna from Vietnam in the period, importing products worth USD 7.19 million (EUR 6.45 million), down 39 percent year-on-year. The lower sales were due to falling demand in canned tuna in Germany in the first eight months of this year, which saw a decline of 25 percent compared with 2018.
VASEP said Vietnam was the fourth-largest supplier of canned tuna in Germany during the period. The Philippines replaced Ecuador to become the largest exporter of canned tuna in Germany in the first eight months of the year.
The Netherlands was the second-largest buyer of canned tuna from Vietnam from the bloc, with USD 3.03 million (EUR 2.71 million), up 74.4 percent, followed by Croatia with USD 2.01 million (EUR 1.8 million), 28.1 percent lower year-on-year, VASEP said.
Vietnam has seen its sales of wild-caught seafood to the E.U. fall following a yellow card imposed nearly two years ago.
Alongside canned tuna, Vietnam also exported live, fresh, frozen, and dried tuna from January to August. In the first eight months, Vietnam's overall tuna exports were worth nearly USD 494 million (EUR 443.3 million), rising 17.7 percent year-on-year.
The United States was the largest destination for tuna products in the period, with nearly USD 216.9 million (EUR 194.6 million), up 56.1 percent, followed by the E.U. with USD 95.9 million (EUR 86 million), down 6.3 percent, and the Association of Southeast Asia Nations (ASEAN) with USD 33 million (EUR 29.6 million), down 0.9 percent. The export value to most other markets, except Israel, in the first eight months rose from a year ago.
VASEP said earlier this month Vietnam is expected to export tuna worth USD 800 million (EUR 729 million), up 23 percent from 2018.
Photo courtesy of Toan Dao/SeafoodSource
