The EU was once Vietnam’s largest importer of pangasius, accounting for 40% of the export value of the pangasius industry. However, due to various reasons such as unhealthy competition, price reductions, quality reductions, and the tarnishing of Vietnam’s pangasius image, the market share has significantly decreased. Vietnamese pangasius has conquered more than 140 markets worldwide.
According to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), the export value of Vietnamese pangasius in the first four months of 2023 reached less than $600 million, a decrease of 46% compared to the same period in 2022.
As a white meat fish species indigenous to Vietnam, pangasius farming in our country always accounts for 95% of the total global pangasius farming output. Vietnamese pangasius has conquered more than 140 markets worldwide. The popularity of pangasius and the efforts of the Vietnamese business community to bring pangasius to all five continents have helped this industry bring in large foreign currency revenues each year. With an export value of $1.5-2.4 billion per year, pangasius accounts for 16-26% of Vietnam’s total seafood export value.
EXPORTS ARE ALWAYS VOLATILE
In the past 10 years, pangasius exports have gone through a period of volatile ups and downs. Pangasius export value once reached a record high of over $2 billion in 2012, then continuously decreased in the following years: reaching $1.8 billion in 2013; reaching $1.7 billion in 2014; reaching $1.6 billion in 2015.
Pangasius exports recovered from 2016 to 2019, specifically: reaching $1.67 billion in 2016; reaching $1.78 billion in 2017; setting a record of $2.26 billion in 2018, reaching $2 billion in 2019.
By 2020, pangasius exports had dropped to their lowest level at nearly $1.5 billion, down 26% from 2019. The reason was due to Covid’s strong outbreak on the world market, especially in the US and EU, causing demand to decrease and more seriously was the disruption of global trade logistics chains, sea freight rates increased sharply causing pangasius businesses to not be able to withstand on distant markets such as America and Europe.
In 2021, consumption markets began to stabilize again, but waves of Covid continued to erupt in Vietnam, causing the entire seafood production and trade chain to be disrupted, most heavily for pangasius because it was located in the epidemic center and was stagnated right at the time when it was necessary to accelerate production and export for the end of the year and new year. Therefore, although pangasius exports have recovered by 8%, they still only reached over $1.6 billion in 2021.
2022 is a period of “revival” for the pangasius industry, with Vietnamese pangasius exports breaking out strongly with a record $2.4 billion. After the peak of the epidemic, there were still many inventories left, processing production recovered, demand on all markets increased. Export prices for pangasius to markets increased by 20-55%, especially in the US market. The Russia-Ukraine conflict caused a decrease in white meat fish supply in many markets, creating an opportunity for pangasius to increase its market share.
In December 2022, VASEP issued a Report on Pangasius Industry from 2017-2022, which stated: Forecasting that white meat fish supply will decrease and white meat fish prices will increase sharply in 2023, then Vietnamese pangasius still sees optimistic opportunities in 2023. When inflation seeps deep into world economies, especially G7 markets, consumers have and will continue to tighten spending on high-priced food items. Therefore, although it is somewhat affected by consumption demand and foodstuffs, compared with other seafood items, consumption and entry into markets will still be stable in 2023.
However, contrary to VASEP’s report assessment, pangasius exports plummeted by a terrible 46% compared to the same period last year during the first four months of 2023.