However, the news is not all good for many farmers who can't get loans and have been forced to temporarily stop production. The price of tra fish has also dropped and the price of feed risen in the same period.
According to Vu Van Tam, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), export turnover in 1991 was $1.2 billion. In 2011 the figure had jumped to $6.1 billion.
Tam said in June this year, Viet Nam earned $550 million from seafood exports. This brought export turnover for the first six months to a remarkable $2.9 billion, an increase of 10.6 percent against the same period last year.
Nguyen Ngoc Oai, director general of the Department of Aqua Products Exploitation and Protection attributed the success to fishing units set up by fishermen.
"Since the new model was introduced last July, more than 2,400 fishing units have been established", said Oai.
However, the economic downturn in Europe has had a serious impact on Vietnamese aqua-product enterprises. The number of enterprises involved in export activities dropped 40 per cent in the first six months.
In addition, the export price of a kilo of tra fish has dropped to VND20,000 ($0.95) from VND22,000 ($1.05). Meanwhile the price of fish feed has increased by about 10 per cent (VND 23,000-25,000/kg).
This has cost farmers about VND5,000 a kilo and forced up to 60 per cent of households rearing tra fish in the Mekong Delta to temporarily stop production.
Duong Nghia Quoc, director of Dong Thap Province's Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said part of the problem was a lack of capital investment.
"It is estimated that more than 80 per cent of tra fish farmers need cash, but high interest rates and a shortage of loan has hampered them," Quoc said.
Due to the shortage of capital, many Vietnamese enterprises are forced to lower the selling price of tra fillet from $3 to $2.6, making survival difficult.
Nguyen Danh Hien, director of the Minh Phu Aqua Product Company in Kien Giang Province said he needed about VND1 billion to raise one hectare of shrimps. However, he could only borrow up to VND30 million because he didn't have much collateral.
When he approached a bank for credit, he was told shrimp raising was too risky and banks didn't want to loan money.
To help farmers overcome difficulties, the Viet Nam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) has asked the Government to urgently loan VND4,400 billion ($214.6 million) to tra fish farmers and VND6,000 billion ($293 million) to shrimp farmers.
VASEP wants the Government to levy an interest rate of less than 10 per cent a year. Deputy Minister Tam said MARD would do its best to attract more investment from the foreign direct investment (FDI) sector.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Vietfish 2026, the Vietnam International Seafood Exhibition, will officially take place from 19–21 August 2026 in Ho Chi Minh City. As Vietnam’s largest annual seafood trade event, organized by the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), Vietfish 2026 will once again bring together leading seafood companies, industry experts, and international partners from across the global seafood value chain.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Vietnam’s seafood exports reached USD 1.1 billion in July 2026, up 4.8% compared to the same period in 2025. Cumulative exports in the first seven months of the year totaled nearly USD 6.86 billion, an increase of 11.5% year-on-year. Exceeding the USD 1 billion mark in July further reinforces the prospect that Vietnam’s seafood exports could surpass USD 12 billion in 2026. However, the July figures also send a clear signal that the most favorable growth period may have passed: overall export growth slowed to just 4.8%, pangasius exports fell 6.1%, tuna exports were virtually flat, while exports to the EU, South Korea, and the Middle East all recorded double-digit declines.
(vasep.com.vn) As part of the Vietnam Fisheries International Exhibition (Vietfish 2026), the seminar "Global Seafood Market and the Future Workforce: Trends, Opportunities, and Sustainable Development Pathways for Vietnam's Seafood Industry" will take place from 2:00 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. on August 19, 2026, at Convention Room B, Level 2, SECC, Ho Chi Minh City. This is the first of five specialized seminars at Vietfish 2026, focusing on key issues that are shaping the long-term development of Vietnam's seafood industry.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Vietnamese seafood exports recorded impressive growth, generating nearly 6 billion USD in revenue during the first six months of the year, up 13% compared with the same period last year.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Fishermen in Ha Tinh are gradually overcoming difficulties to maintain the efficiency of seafood exploitation. In the first six months of 2026, the entire province achieved a production of more than 23,000 tons of seafood, worth more than 1,200 billion VND.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) June 2026 brought encouraging signs for Vietnam's tuna exports, with export value rising 20% year-on-year to nearly USD 72 million. However, this increase has yet to offset the prolonged slowdown seen in key markets such as the European Union (EU), where import demand remains weak. The outlook for the second half of the year is expected to become more challenging as freight rates continue to climb.
(vasep.com.vn) As part of the Vietnam Fisheries International Exhibition (Vietfish 2026), the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), in collaboration with the Agency for Domestic Market Management and Development under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, will organize the Domestic Seafood Supply–Demand Matching Program on the morning of August 20, 2026, at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center (SECC), Ho Chi Minh City. The program aims to foster direct business connections between Vietnamese seafood producers and processors and domestic distributors, retailers, and foodservice channels.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) The Cooking Show will be one of the most engaging experiential highlights of Vietfish 2026. Taking place over three days, from August 19–21, 2026, at Hall B1, SECC, Ho Chi Minh City, the event will offer visitors a vibrant culinary space where Vietnamese seafood is showcased through its flavors, stories, and real-life culinary applications.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Vietnam's pangasius exports reached USD 205 million in June 2026, up 5% compared with the same month in 2025. Cumulative export value for the first six months of the year totaled USD 1.1 billion, an increase of 12% year-on-year. Growth was primarily driven by strong demand from China and CPTPP markets, while exports to the United States and Brazil continued to decline.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) In the first six months of 2026, Ha Tinh province continued to implement comprehensive solutions to combat IUU fishing; strictly manage the fishing fleet, control fishing vessels entering and leaving ports, operate vessel tracking devices, trace the origin of seafood, and severely punish violations.
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