China - the biggest bright spot of Vietnamese shrimp exports
According to a report of Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers, in the first quarter of 2025, shrimp export reached 939 million USD, an increase of over 37% compared to the same period in 2024. This impressive growth comes from recovery of demand in many major markets, especially China, the US, Japan and CPTPP bloc.
In particular, China and Hong Kong (China) are the biggest bright spots in export "picture" of Vietnamese shrimp industry with a total turnover of 288 million USD, an increase of 125%. Notably, lobster export to this market continue to increase strongly. Export price of Vietnamese black tiger shrimp to China in March remained at 9.6 USD/kg, a slight increase compared to January. However, price of whiteleg shrimp remained low (6.6 USD/kg), showing that competitive pressure from Ecuador and India still exists.
Along with Chinese market, Vietnamese shrimp exports to the US reached 134 million USD in the first quarter of 2025, up 11% over the same period last year.
Shrimp exports to EU in the first quarter of this year reached 107 million USD, recording a positive growth of 33%. Exports to Japan reached 124 million USD, up 20% and exports to Korean market reached 77 million USD, up 16% over the same period last year. With CPTPP market block, export value reached 269 million USD, up 40% but market still depends heavily on Japan and Canada.
Capacity building, need to "green" shrimp industry
According to a report of Department of Fisheries and Fisheries Control (Ministry of Agriculture and Environment), seafood export turnover in the first quarter of 2025 reached 2.29 billion USD, an increase of 18.1% over the same period in 2024.
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Mr. Tran Dinh Luan - Director of Department of Fisheries and Fisheries Control - commented that shrimp and pangasius are still main export products of the industry. Notably, in the first quarter of 2025, shrimp exports recorded impressive growth, over 37.8% over the same period last year. However, Vietnamese shrimp industry is facing significant difficulties.
To overcome challenges, in face of risks of trade barriers, seafood exporting enterprises need to focus on investing in deep processing and building the "Vietnamese shrimp" brand associated with quality, sustainability and transparency.
In addition, businesses are stepping up exploitation of free trade agreements (FTAs) such as: EVFTA, CPTPP, RCEP... At the same time, expanding potential markets with large shrimp consumption demand such as: Japan, Korea, Canada, Europe and potential Halal market.
Along with market diversification, improving competitiveness of Vietnamese shrimp industry is an urgent requirement. Talking to reporters of Industry and Trade Newspaper, Dr. Ho Quoc Luc - former Chairman of VASEP, Chairman of Board of Directors of FIMEX Vietnam - informed that seafood products that want to penetrate high-end shelves need to convince partners of what they have been doing in the process of creating products that meet the criteria required by partners.
In addition to advantage of low prices, Ecuadorian shrimp industry also has another advantage: about 30% of their shrimp farming area is ASC certified, making it easy to consume in EU and the United States. This rate in the Vietnamese shrimp farming industry is an extremely modest number. The reason is that majority of farming areas are small, difficult to do and if done, the cost is too high. This should also be considered a "bottleneck" that needs to be addressed to give shrimp industry more opportunities to grow.
The market is facing huge fluctuations. Experts say that Vietnamese shrimp industry is facing difficulties and needs flexible and timely response strategies and tactics. Thereby, it will contribute to minimizing new difficulties as well as raising level of the industry. In particular, "greening" the shrimp industry is a necessary step.
Regarding this, Ms. Le Hang - Deputy General Secretary of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Processors and Exporters - said that according to Decision 3444/QD-BNN-KH dated September 12, 2023 of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (now Ministry of Agriculture and Environment), National Strategy on Green Growth sets out specific tasks for aquaculture.
The shrimp industry is oriented to apply new farming objects with high efficiency, good resistance and adaptability to changing climate conditions. At the same time, disease control, reducing antibiotic use and ensuring food safety are top priorities. Decision 4441/QD-BNN-KHCN dated December 13, 2024 continues to promote circular economy, utilize agricultural by-products and develop biological products to treat farming environment, opening up a sustainable direction for the industry.
Accordingly, shrimp industry has promoted circular farming technology and recycling by-products; reducing pollution and optimizing nutrition. Efficient use of energy is another pillar of green development. Integrated farming models such as shrimp - forest and shrimp - rice are also encouraged. These models are not only environmentally friendly but also contribute to product diversification and increasing economic value.
Traceability is an indispensable requirement to meet international standards. Application of quality management systems such as ASC, BRC and GlobalGAP not only enhances reputation of Vietnamese shrimp products but also helps consumers trust green, clean origin of products.
According to Ms. Le Hang, green development of Vietnam's shrimp industry is a comprehensive direction, combining advanced technology, effective waste management and sustainable farming practices. These efforts not only protect environment, improve shrimp quality but also reduce costs and increase competitiveness in the global market.

Source: Vitic/ congthuong.vn