Seafood sector angles for Egypt

Seafood exporters are eyeing Egypt as a potential market after demand was forecast to surge 10 percent annually, according to the Viet Nam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).

VASEP said it was reported that Egyptian demand for seafood would rise 10% in the next five years due to a population increase and a greater number of foreign residents.

Egypt currently consumes roughly 1 million tones of seafood yearly, of which 250,000 tonnes are from imports. Main seafood suppliers to Egypt include Holland , the UK , Germany , the US and Norway .

According to VASEP, although export turnover to Egypt is quite small, Vietnamese seafood exports to the market have reported high growth rates. Last year, the country made more than 20 million USD from seafood exports to Egypt , a 4.7 fold increase over 2006.

Viet Nam trade counsellor in Egypt , Dang Ngoc Quang, said though Vietnam earned only 100 million USD in exports to Egypt , the market held greart potential.

However, Quang recommended domestic exporters pay attention to trade promotions like seminars to popularise Vietnamese export products in the market.

According to VASEP, most Vietnamese seafood imported to Egypt was through foreign companies, so Vietnamese seafood trademarks in the market have remained unknown and unpopular.

VASEP also suggested that domestic seafood exporters scrutinize Egyptian import quality regulations to minimise any product rejections given the strictness of the market’s seafood monitoring.

Egypt requires imported seafood to meet a series of regulations including preservative and chemical prohibitions and temperature stipulations. (VNA)