Shrimp has always accounted for the biggest portion in Vietnam’s seafood export value in recent years and the country is rushing to cement its leading position.
In January, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc approved a national action plan for the shrimp industry through 2025, aiming to turn it into a key economic sector with sustainable development, a copy of the plan showed.
Under the scheme, the country targets to gain USD 5.5 billion (EUR 4.4 billion) from shrimp exports in 2020 and USD 10 billion (EUR 8.1 billion) in 2025, much higher than USD 3.7 billion (EUR 3 billion) in 2016 and USD 3.9 billion (EUR 3.1 billion) in 2017.
Shrimp export value accounted for 52.1 percent of Vietnam’s total seafood export value in 2016 and 46.3 percent in 2017, according to customs data in January.
Most of Vietnam’s shrimp export value will come from farming. Sales value from wild shrimp catches will account for 5.5 percent of the total shrimp export value in 2020 and 3 percent in 2025, down from 7.2 percent in 2016.
The country’s total shrimp farming areas are also expected to increase to 740,000 hectares in 2020 and 800,000 hectares in 2025, up from 714,239 hectares in 2016.
Its shrimp production is targeted to increase to 832,500 metric tons (MT) in 2020 and 1.153 million MT in 2025, rising from 668,814 MT in 2016.
Prime Minister Phuc said in February last year Vietnam will strive to become a major hub of shrimp production in the world. Ca Mau, Bac Lieu and other provinces in the Mekong Delta will continue to play a central role in the country’s total shrimp production.
Vietnam will mainly focus its production on white leg, or Pacific white, shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) and black tiger shrimp (Penaeus monodon). The country plans to produce 480,000 MT and 700,000 MT of the white leg shrimp in 2020 and 2025, respectively, up from 393,429 MT in 2016. The production of the black tiger shrimp will go up to 320,000 MT and 400,000 MT in 2020 and 2025, respectively, from 263,853 MT in 2016, according to the plan.
Vietnam’s shrimp industry has great potential for growth with 28 coastal provinces and cities stretching more than 3,200 kilometers of coastline, state-run Vietnam News has reported.
