Although seafood export turnover in August decreased as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, seafood exports in the first 8 months of 2021 still increased by 1.4% over the same period last year. It is forecasted that seafood exports will prosper in the fourth quarter of 2021 after positive signals of the pandemic.
According to the Directorate of Fisheries, the export of many items, including seafood, saw a sharp fall in August 2021. Total production of this month was estimated at around 801.4 thousand tons, down 2.6 % over the same period. It was also the first month in which there was a drop. Nevertheless, seafood production by the end of August 2021 reached 5.7 million tons, up 1.4% year-on-year and accounting for 66.2% of the 2021 plan thanks to the growth momentum of the first 7 months of this year.
Despite facing various difficulties, seafood enterprises have continued to have growth prospects in the latter months. The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic leads to a decrease in the global supply of shrimp because production chains in India and Indonesia are disrupted. Vietnamese enterprises still utilize material reserves, and lots of provinces in the Mekong Delta push off-season shrimp farming. Only by one successful off-season shrimp farming will the seafood sector achieve a target export turnover of 8.8 billion USD in 2021.
Currently, the Directorate of Fisheries and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development have actively informed and educated farmers, controlling the diseases while also developing a mechanism to remove obstacles and encourage farmers to maintain aquaculture and exploitation. Businesses and processing facilities in the southern provinces have made great efforts to adapt and received government assistance. The electricity price of the shrimp industry will decline by 10% in three months starting September 2021. Additionally, on September 9, 2021, the Government issued Resolution No. 105/NQ-CP to restore and develop production and business operations of enterprises, cooperatives, business households, as well as promptly resolve production-related challenges.
