Vietfish, Vietnam’s annual biggest fisheries exhibition, started in Ho Chi Minh City Tuesday with more than 190 exhibitors, attracting many visitors in the opening day.
Over 190 companies, both local and foreign, are displaying at more than 300 booths their latest products and technology solutions during the three-day exhibition at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center in District 7.
The foreign exhibitors come from Thailand, Norway, Germany, Japan, the US, Korea, Chile, Indonesia, the Philippines and others.
The event sees the participation of Vietnam’s leading seafood companies such as Bianfishco, Vinh Hoan, Minh Phu, Hung Vuong, Hai Nam, Camimex, Quoc Viet, Phu Cuong, Caseamex, Nam Viet Corporation, Minh Chau, and Cafatex.
Addressing the opening ceremony, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Mr Luong Le Phuong said, “Together with the exhibition activities, meetings to sign contracts or technology transfers, a series of seminars and workshops will be held during Vietfish.
“In addition, a seafood culinary show is being organized during the event to serve the visitors and to introduce processed products coming from the exhibitors.
“I’m certain that Vietfish 2011 will bring about lots of business opportunities. The participants will be able to boost trade, get new partners and sign contracts. I expect that, via the exhibition, seafood companies will be able to work out suitable development strategies so they can compete well in the era of development and integration.”
The Deputy Agriculture Minister said that with the ongoing global economic crisis, Vietnam continues to face many difficulties and challenges in exporting aqua-products. “However, thanks to the Government’s strong determination and packages of solutions to fight against a domestic downturn, fisheries exports keep expanding.”
“The forecast for fisheries exports this year is more than US$5 billion in total revenue. If this is achieved, a record increase of 18% for three years in a row will be set, and this will again make Vietnam one of the world’s five biggest aqua-product exporters.
“Having identified its responsibility of matching economic development with environmental protection and social accountability, Vietnam will continue this sustainable development model in fisheries through an overall combination between material production and processing and, as required, make declarations of origin, manage farming areas and ensure food hygiene standards in fisheries,” said Mr. Phuong.
The exhibition organizer is the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers, or VASEP.
During the opening ceremony, VASEP president Tran Thien Hai announced the association’s newly-launched initiative to call on companies, organizations and individuals to raise funds to support Vietnam’s East Sea fishermen, who Mr Hai said are facing attacks from Chinese ships in the Vietnamese waters.
After the opening, VASEP general secretary Truong Dinh Hoe said the initial raised funds were over VND2.3 billion (more than US$115,000), and the number is increasing.
He said VASEP would wrap up the first stage of the assistance program on July 31, then immediately transfer the proceeds to affected fishermen nationwide.
A series of workshops are organized during Vietfish, such as Traceability for the Global Food Industry, organized by Trace Register LLC; Seafood Markets Watch; Ensuring Safety for Vietnamese Aqua-products to Access Key Export Market, organized by Tuv Rheinland Aimex Vietnam; and Transportation Solutions to Reefer Containers from Mekong Delta to HCM City Ports and Transit to Cambodia.
