HCM City (VNA) - After being affected by the COVID-19pandemic and fluctuations in inflation, the demand and trends of seafoodconsumption in many markets have changed, requiring Vietnamese seafoodenterprises to adapt to those market trends, experts said.

Theview was shared at a seminar on demand and trends of the seafood marketafter COVID-19 organised by the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exportersand Producers (VASEP) on August 24 in Ho Chi Minh City.

TheCOVID-19 pandemic, logistics disruptions due to the Russia-Ukraineconflict and compliance with regulations on illegal, unreported and unregulatedfishing (IUU) are challenges facing the seafood industry.

LeHang, VASEP director of communications, said the world seafood market inthe past five years has grown by 16% with an annual import turnover ofabout 148.5 billion USD, of which, shrimp accounted for the highestproportion and increased the most (29%), while salmon increased 16%, and demandfor tuna was less volatile.

Meanwhile,demand from the Chinese market has jumped 71% over the lastfive years, followed by the US with an increase of 32%. Most markets saw increaseddemand, except for Japan, which decreased by 6%, and Germany, which decreasedslightly by 0.6%.

Exportingseafood to the EU market is facing many challenges because each market in theEU bloc has its own requirements.

Inaddition, inflation is making EU consumers tighten their spendingand focus on moderately priced items. The lowest EUR/USD exchangerate in 20 years also makes consumers limit spending, forcing importers tore-negotiate with exporters, which delays imports.

Otherchallenges include stricter demands for EU market certification, and environmentaland labour requirements, which can be serious problems for Vietnameseseafood producers.

Totake full advantage of the EVFTA, VASEP is asking for more support from theImport-Export Department and the Ministry of Industry and Trade for businessesto make the most of preferential tariffs and apply the rules of origin toreduce obstacles when exporting seafood to the EU market.

TheEU used to be Vietnam's largest pangasius import market, with peak sales of 511million USD in 2010, accounting for 36% of Vietnam's pangasius exports. Vietnamesepangasius also accounted for 22% of the EU’s import of white fish.

However,in 2021, pangasius exports to the EU reached just over 106 million USD,accounting for 7% of Vietnam's total pangasius exports. In the EU white-meatfish import market, Vietnamese pangasius only accounts for 1.6% of marketshare.

TheEVFTA, effective from August 1, 2020, brought excellent prospects for Vietnam'sseafood exports, including pangasius, to this market. Accordingly, the exportof pangasius products will receive tax reductions under a three-year roadmap.

Smokedpangasius exports will have tax reductions within seven years fromthe effective day of the agreement.

However,the advantages of tariffs did not promote an increase in pangasius exports tothe EU in 2020 and 2021 because of the pandemic.

Inaddition, there is an issue regarding compliance with regulations againstunreported and unregulated fishing (IUU). Four years since receivinga "yellow card", Vietnamese seafood export volume to the EUmarket declined by 3% during 2017-2021.

TheGovernment has pledged to come up with appropriate and effective solutionsto quickly solve the "yellow card" penalty.

Vietnam can thenavoid the risk of receiving a "red card" and enjoy preferentialtariffs and institutional changes from the EVFTA.

However,seafood exports to the EU still maintained a growth rate of 28% in July and 39%in the first seven months of this year, to 829 million USD, compared to thesame period in 2021.

Seafoodexports to the US in the first seven months reached nearly 1.5 billion USD, up31% year on year, Hang said.

Meanwhile,seafood export value to China in the first seven months grew by 71% to 1billion USD./.