(pangasius-vietnam.com) According to Directorate of Fisheries (D-Fish), in 2011, the total production of pangasius seed nationwide reached nearly 2.4 billion pieces, pangasius farming area was 5,430 hectares, harvested fish production gained 1,195,344 MT. Compared to 2010, fish seed production was stable while farming area increased by 30 hectares and fish production rose by 50,000 MT.
In 2011, the price of feed for fish farming surged by VND1,200 per kilogram, seven-fold higher than that of 2010. The reason is that the price of inputs for feed processing rallied by 5 percent year on year, the government strengthened tightening credit policy, exchange rate between VND and USD was high. At some time, the fish feed price in 2011 rose by 16 - 30 percent higher than that of 2010.
Moreover, the import price of material for feed producing was also climbing. Main inputs for feed producing such as fishmeal is quoted at VND15,000 - 19,000 per kilogram, rising by VND4,000 - 5,000 per kilogram, soybean quoted at VND12,000 - 17,000 per kilogram, rice mask quoted at VND4,500 - 6,000 per kilogram while interest rate for bank loans increased by more than 20 percent per year, power and fuel price are also high.
In fact, industrial feed in shape of small balls is quoted at higher price while its quality is lower. D-Fish and provincial Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development’ s sampling inspection showed that some feed samples contain a lower content of protein than standard level. This reduces the fish production, increases feed conversion ratio (FCR) and the input costs for fish farming.
Since January to May 2011, higher input costs increased from VND19,000 to VND24,000 per kilogram.