The Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap has produced 400,000 tonnes of pangasius a year, marking the highest output in the region.
Phan Kim Sa, Deputy Director of the provincial Department of Industry and Trade, said materials zones account for more than 63 percent of the province’s pangasius cultivation area of 2,120 ha, leading to the high output.
After a local chain value model was built, processing firms have restructured their operations by acquiring weak ones and building a chain of supply-processing-consumption and export.
More than 1,000ha of pangasius are being bred under VietGAP, GlobalGAP, ASC, BAP standards. With 122 fries producing facilities, 48 trading and over 1,200 breeding units, the province expects to produce more than 1 billion fries this year. According to Sa, Dong Thap pangasius has been present in nearly 100 markets worldwide.
In January-October, the province exported more than 207,000 tonnes of farmed fish, earning over 521 million USD, up 3.43 percent annually.
Dong Thap is currently home to 24 for-export seafood processors with a total annual capacity of over 429,000 tonnes. A majority of plants meet HACCP and ISO standards and could self-provide 60-70 percent of needed materials.
In the coming years, the province strives to raise over 500,000 tonnes of pangasius in an area of more than 2,200ha, and export upward 645 million USD worth of pangasius.