(vasep.com.vn) The export-driven fishery industry is the key economic sector of Ca Mau province. In 2013, seafood exports brought back US$1 billion. The figure is expected to increase to US$1.2 billion in 2014.
There are 12,000 workers back to work in 22 out of 33 Ca Mau-based processing plants for exported frozen seafood products on the second day of Vietnamese Lunar New Year.
Over the recent years, Ca Mau has been focusing in developing the local processing chain. Its 33 seafood processing plants are all equipped with modern technologies to produce high quality products meeting international standards. The province now numbers 30,000 workers in these plants.
At the same time, nearly 3,000 fishermen started their fishing trips to kick off a new fishing season.
Song Doc is the largest fishing zone in Mekong Delta, which reported 2,500 boats and 20,000 fishermen. In 2013, local catch was 170,000 MT of aquatic species of all varieties. Song Doc strives to reach 20,000 of catch in 2014.
Leading in shrimp farming and exporting
Ca Mau-resided farmers are preparing 260,000 hectares of farming ponds for the new shrimp season. Ponds for industrial shrimp production reaches 6,050 hectares, 50 hectares above those in the same period of 2013. Currently, whiteleg shrimp is highly valued thanks to short farming period and high profits. Local farmers are turning to this species, which even takes a proportion of 60 – 70 percent of farming area in some destinations.
The province also targets to maintain its first position in the Vietnamese shrimp industry.