Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - The EU is a potential market for Vietnam'sshrimp industry next year because it is the largest shrimp market in the world,while the shrimp production of this bloc has not met its demand, according todomestic seafood experts.

If the domestic shrimp industry takes advantage of preferential tariff andimplements rules of origin under the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), Vietnam'sshrimp exports to the EU will increase from next year, said Truong Dinh Hoe,general secretary of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers(VASEP).

Hoe said, according to the EVFTA signed on June 30, 2019, the tariffs of mostraw shrimp, including fresh, frozen and chilled products, imported from Vietnaminto the EU will be reduced from the basic rate of 12-20 percent to zero assoon as the agreement comes into effect, expectedly next year. Meanwhile,import tariffs of processed shrimp will fall to zero after seven years.

With those tariffs, Vietnam has many advantages in exporting its shrimpproducts to the EU, according to the association. Currently, the EU accountsfor about 31 percent of total world shrimp exports and 22 percent of Vietnam'sshrimp exports.

To take advantage, the VASEP said that immediate and long-term requirements areto create a certified shrimp supply with competitive prices and build aVietnamese shrimp brand.

Therefore, the shrimp industry needs help from the Ministry of Agriculture andRural Development and the General Department of Fisheries to control the shrimpfarming process and prevent the use of banned chemicals during production. Thesector also needs assistance in re-arranging shrimp farming areas and creatinglarge-scale farms and cooperatives according to international aquaculturestandards.

It should also take advantage in reducing import tariffs of high-classprocessed food from the basic rate of 20 percent to 7 percent under theGeneralised System of Preferences Treatment (GSP) that is the tariff fordeveloping countries.

For example, the EU’s basic import tariff of 20 percent is imposed on boiledshrimp product of all countries, but the rate for the Vietnamese boiled shrimpis only 7 percent under the GSP tariffs. This will increase competitiveness forVietnamese boiled shrimp and also being a higher value for this product. Theadvantage will increase the purchase price of raw material, leading to moreincome for farmers. The farmers will have funds to improve the quality of rawmaterial under international standards.

The Vietnam Trade Office in Belgium said Vietnamese export enterprises need tohave information on EU standards if they want to enter this market. Shrimps canonly be exported to the EU if they are from countries licensed to export to theEU and farmed at registered farms with EU certifications.

The businesses need to comply with EU food labelling regulations to ensureconsumers receive the information they need to make decisions when buying food,including product names and lists of ingredients, including additives.

According to the General Department of Fisheries, shrimp prices have increasedagain because the EU is promoting seafood in the last months of 2019. However,exports to this market in the second half of the year could not recover asexpected.

The VASEP said Vietnam’s shrimp export value in the first 10 months this yeardecreased by 6.4 percent year-on-year to 2.78 billion USD. The reduction wasdue to high supply at home and abroad. Meanwhile, lower demand and high supplyin the world market also contributed to the drop in the global export price.

Vietnam’s shrimp exports to the EU fell by 20.8 percent in the first ninemonths, of which exports to the UK dropped 14.4 percent, to Germany by 5.8 percentand to the Netherlands by 40.8 percent./.