Increasing seafood exports to Egypt

Increasing seafood exports to Egypt

Egypt is currently Vietnams second largest export market in Africa, and is a great potential market for Vietnamese seafood exports.
Update: (12/10/2014)

Potential for Vietnamese seafood

According to statistics, Vietnamese exports to Egypt reached more than US$282 million in the first nine months of this year, an increase of almost 71 percent from a year ago. Of this, seafood took first place with revenue of more than US$56 million accounting for 20 percent of total exports, and 100 percent of seafood export revenue in 2013. Fiber took second place with an export revenue of US$34.49 million, and pepper third place with US$32.33 million.

The major Vietnamese seafood exports to Egypt are Tra fish, shrimp, tinned tuna and fish fillets. Tra fish exports reached US$35.8 million in the first nine months of this year, accounting for 62 percent of total Vietnamese seafood exports to this market. Meanwhile, white-clawed shrimp netted almost US$16 million and 28 percent, and Black Tiger shrimp US$1.1 million.

According to the Vietnamese Trade Office in Egypt, with a population of 85 million, 90 percent of whom are Muslim, Egypts demand for seafood averages at about two million tonnes per year. But because domestic supply cannot meet demand, seafood has become one of Vietnam leading exports to Egypt.

To improve the reputation and quality of seafood exports to this market, the Vietnamese Trade Office in Egypt and the African, West and South Asian Markets Department under the Ministry of Industry and Trade recommended that Vietnamese businesses ensure the stable quality of exports to meet Egyptian food safety standards, choose the best forms of delivery and payment to avoid pressure from the importers, and regulate dispute resolution in their export contracts.

Trade promotion activities for the Egyptian market

To boost trade promotion activities for the Egyptian market, the Ministry of Industry and Trade recently got together with the Cairo Chamber of Commerce and the Vietnamese Embassy in Egypt to launch a workshop to present the market opportunities for Vietnamese agricultural products and seafood. Almost 30 Egyptian groups and trading companies attended the workshop and showed their desire to find reputable producers and exporters and to increase the import of Vietnamese agricultural products and seafood such as frozen fish fillets, pepper, cashew nuts, and rubber.

ALMEN Export Import Company General Director Ahmed Elsheikh said at the workshop that during the last 10 years his company has maintained very good relations with many suppliers in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Vinh in Nghe An Province, with total import revenues of about US$3 million in rubber, black pepper and cashew nuts. ALMENs two offices in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi are currently working in a reputable and effective manner.

Arabian Home (AH) Company Chairman Ibrahim Mossalm is keen to find partners in Vietnam for the transfer of agricultural harvesting technology. AH currently imports various kinds of rice from Vietnam and intends to take part in the upcoming Vietnam International Seafood Exhibition (Vietfish) to present their new technologies.

During this workshop several Egyptian businesses proposed that the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade closely control the quality of agricultural export products, while taking domestic businesses to task over cases of trade fraudulence. They said this would be a practical way to refresh the business environment./.

from Vasep,