The standards help farmers achieve stability in production and quality and sell and export their fish more easily, as well as significantly slash costs because fish contract fewer diseases.
Since 2000, the pangasius farming sector has boosted output 36-fold to 1.35 million tones, increased exports of finished products by nearly 40 times to 660,000 tonnes and ramped up export turnover by more than 45 times to USD 1.86 billion. Exports are now shipped to 130 countries worldwide.
Pham Anh Tuan, deputy director of the Department of Fisheries, said consumers in many markets now attach importance to certification such as GlobalGAP in Western Europe and the US and Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) in Northern Europe, VNS reports.
The certificates cover environmental protection, food hygiene and safety, social responsibility and product origin.
"VietGAP certificate includes all of these, and will help exporters upgrade to other certificates easily," Tuan said.
Further, the growing global emphasis on food safety and origin of products mean that fisheries products that meet these requirements would be able to enter international markets more easily, she highlighted.
"The application of VietGAP standards will be essential for the aquaculture industry to make products that meet the world market's requirements. But it is true that many agricultural producers including pangasius farmers are reluctant to adopt safe production methods including VietGAP because they think it is expensive and make them uncompetitive," he added.
In response, the prime minister signed a decision earlier this year offering incentives to farmers and businesses for adopting safe production methods and generating high-quality products. The incentives include full funding for baseline surveys, topographical surveys and analyses of soil, water and air samples to identify areas for concentrated production, plus training and financial support for the adoption of VietGAP standards.
The Directorate of Fisheries of Vietnam last year said it would support and provide free services for VietGAP certification, so pangasius farmers would pay the lower certification fee when registering for Good Agriculture Practices (GlobalGAP), ASC or SQF 1000 certification.
MARD has also set ambitious targets for achieving VietGAP certification: 30 per cent of all aquaculture establishments will achieve it by 2015 and 80 per cent by 2020.
"The cost of raising pangasius to VietGAP standards is 20-25 per cent more when compared with traditional methods, but the benefits this safe production method can bring are much more, so many local farmers decide to adopt it," said Nguyen Van Tam of the Tra Vinh Agriculture Extension Centre.
(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.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Vietnam's tilapia exports reached USD 7 million in June 2026, down 32% compared with the same month in 2025. Nevertheless, thanks to strong growth in the first five months of the year, cumulative tilapia exports in the first half of 2026 totaled USD 69 million, up 67% year on year.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Sa Giang Import-Export Joint Stock Company, a member of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), has been honored with the "Famous Brand - Competitive Vietnamese Brand 2026" certification at an award ceremony organized by the Vietnam Intellectual Property Association (VIPA).
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) China imported nearly $1.4 billion worth of Vietnamese seafood in the first half of the year, a 40% increase compared to the same period last year, surpassing the US to become the largest export market for the industry.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) As part of Vietfish 2026, the International Seafood Hosted Buyer Program has been designed as a dedicated B2B matchmaking initiative for selected international buyers. The program provides opportunities to meet directly with Vietnamese seafood companies, gain market insights, and experience Vietnam's seafood supply chain firsthand.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) A Story from Cà Mau’s Coast It’s 5 AM in Cà Mau. Minh, a third-generation fisherman, is ready to set sail. But unlike his father and grandfather, his boat no longer runs on an old diesel engine that burns fuel and clouds the sky with smoke. Instead, it’s powered by a hybrid engine that saves 40% fuel—funded by an ESG program from a major seafood exporter.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Vietnam's pangasius industry is shifting its focus from increasing production volume to enhancing value-added products in order to meet the increasingly stringent requirements of export markets. In An Giang Province—the country's leading hub for pangasius farming and processing—businesses and farmers are prioritizing product quality, traceability, food safety, and sustainable development rather than expanding output.
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