Enterprises’ access to Eastern European seafood market

The conference "Disseminating technical barriers to implement EVFTA Agreement for the seafood industry" was held in Can Tho city by the Agricultural Products Processing and Market Development Department (MARD).

Representatives of  seafood export enterprises in the Mekong Delta had the opportunity to exchange with representatives of trade agencies from some Eastern European countries, searching for the chance to access their markets, especially for processed seafood in the Mekong Delta with food safety quality  targeting the seafood import market of Poland.

Mr. Piotr Harasimowicz - Chief Representative Officer of the Polish Department of Investment and Trade Agency said: According to the latest consumer market research by The Seafood Consumer Index, on average, 64% of Polish consumers eat fish and seafood at least once per week, and 28% eat twice or more per week. Fish is the primary choice because of its rich nutritional value, Omega-3 fatty acids, Vitamine D, selenium, iodine, and the perfect source of protein. Moreover, Poles are fond of the taste of fish which could be processed in various Polish cooking recipes.

According to Mr. Piotr Harasimowicz, in Poland, fish and seafood are popular with increasing consumption demand. Currently, there is more than 76% of Poles aged 20-34 saying that they want to eat a lot of fish and seafood, and the proportion for those aged 35-49 is 86%. Shops and supermarkets are the largest suppliers, while local shops and small markets provide only frozen fish. There is 51% of Poles choosing fresh fish products and about 50% preferring smoked fish. However, during the Covid-19 pandemic, the demand for products with longer expiration dates such as frozen products and canned fish has increased.

According to European experts, Vietnamese seafood products still have a great potential to export to EU market. Vietnamese enterprises have proven that their product quality meets the requirements and tastes of EU consumers.

Meanwhile, according to seafood industry experts, Vietnam's seafood export turnover to Poland has surged in recent years, and is likely to further increase. However, experts noted that the market competition with reasonable prices of quality products and food safety would be the decisive factors, and Vietnam’s seafood enterprises should promote exploitation of this market.

Since the beginning of 2020, Vietnam's seafood export to the Polish market has reached about 50 million USD, up 26% over the same period in 2019. The Polish Investment and Trade Agency announced their support to the businesses as well as import-export activities of Vietnamese enterprises investing into Poland.