Vietnam seeks to export pork

A pig farm in Vietnam. Local pig farmers and processors are preparing to export pork next year - PHOTO: TL

HANOI – Local pig farmers and processors are working on plans including building disease-free areas to export pork next year.

On the sidelines of a forum held in Hanoi on October 20 to find ways to promote Vietnam’s pork export, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Vu Van Tam said Vietnam has the potential to export livestock.

The country has signed 12 free trade agreements (FTAs) which will facilitate the export of processed, frozen and fresh pork products.

Vietnam is restructuring the livestock sector to increase the value and quality of products and cut prices by applying new technology and ensuring food safety and hygiene.

Tam underlined the need to develop areas free from diseases such as foot and mouth disease.

Gabor Fluit, general director of De Heus Group Asia which participates in pork supply chains in Vietnam and provides consulting services for local pig farmers and pork processing firms, said the Government and pork exporters should upgrade farming infrastructure and build disease-free areas. South Korea, Singapore, Japan, Russia and China might be key importers of pork from Vietnam.

Although Vietnam earns high export turnover from farm produce, at US$30 billion a year, and more than a dozen agricultural products have annual export revenue of billions of U.S. dollars. But the export of livestock products remains insignificant.

According to the Department of Animal Health under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Vietnam has eight slaughterhouses supplying frozen pork for export to Hong Kong and two providing pork for Malaysia with a total volume of 20,000 tons per year. These slaughterhouses are of small scale and meet requirements of Hong Kong and Malaysia only.

Products made from pork in Vietnam have been shipped to the U.S., Australia, Hong Kong and Macau.

The Department of Animal Health is supporting East Sea Trade Developed Investment Corporation, Dabaco Group and CJ Cau Tre Food JSC to export livestock products to Japan, South Korea and Russia.

Vu Trong Nghia, director of East Sea Trade Developed Investment Corporation, said his company has invested in two safe pig farms in the northern province of Nam Dinh and cooperated with the high-quality livestock breeding center at Vietnam National University of Agriculture to apply advanced technology in production.

Last year, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development called on farmers and agencies to develop disease-free areas in Thai Binh and Nam Dinh provinces but the projects have since been stalled as they need huge capital. The corporation would build a disease-free area 15 to 20 kilometers from its factory, said Nghia.