(vasep.com.vn) With a population of 30 million people, Uzbekistan is a landlocked country in Asia which has high demand for tropical products, including seafood.
Among seafood products, Vietnam only sent pangasius to this destination. According to Vietnam Customs, shipment to Uzbekistan reached US$668.37 thousand in 2012, up 229 percent from that in 2011.
The country is a potential market for Vietnam pangasius exporter in the coming years when Russia, the biggest pangasius importers in the Former Soviet Union, will considerably reduce purchase due to stricter domestic policies.
Uzbekistan reported a strong and constant economic growth in 2012. In the context of global financial crisis, this country still got 8.2 percent growth in 2012 and 27.5 percent growth in three recent years. Income per capita went up to 17.5 percent.
The State Committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan on statistics, said that the country successfully boost food production through diversifying its range of products. Between January and July 2012, food production increased by 8.1 percent against that recorded in 2011. Output of fish and canned meat products was up 1.3 folds thanks to measures to improve product diversification and quality.
During the last years, Uzbekistan imported more fish respect other products and varieties. This occurrence is registered because consumption has been rising, while domestic freshwater farmed fish output stagnated. Annual fish aquaculture fell from 20,000 – 25,000 MT in the 1980 -1991 period to 4,200 MT in the 1995 – 2006 period, and went up to 4,051 – 6,654 MT in 2008 – 2010. In 2010, Uzbekistan totaled 6,654 MT of freshwater fish, decreasing 30 percent from that in 1991.
In contrast, imports of fish into Uzbekistan kept soaring as the result of rising consumption demand. Reffering to International Trade Center (ITC), in 2011, imports of fish (HS03) rose 17.3 percent from 2010. So far, Norway remains the largest supplier of fish-derived products to Uzbekistan. Frozen fish has been mostly imported, showing a steady year-on-year growth because of changes in consumption habits of consumers, stronger demand and economic recovery. Frozen fish fillets ranked second. Demand and per-capita consumption of fish will increase, especially for low value species.
In 2013, Uzbekistan is expected to reach an economic growth of more than 8 percent. It continued strengthening competitiveness, modernisation and diversification in the econimic sector. With preferential import duties and advantages from tariff duty system within the Eastern Europe, Uzbekistan is considered as a gateway of Vietnam pangasius companies to introduce products and expand market shares in the Former Soviet Union, the EU and Central Asia.