"Our industry has to shoulder higher costs," said Theera at the 12th Infofish World Tuna Trade Conference and Exhibition.
Minister Theera Wongsamu at 12th Infofish World Tuna Trade Conference and Exhibition. (Photo: Infofish)
The cost and freight (CFR) price of skipjack raw material climbed from USD 918 in 2006 to USD 1,800 - USD 2,025 per ton in 2011, Infofish informed.
Last year, Thailand exported 594,751 tonnes of tuna, a drop of almost 2 per cent by volume, worth THB 60 billion (USD 1.9 billion). Import of frozen tuna fell by 5.3 per cent to 787,088 tonnes, mainly from Taiwan, the US, South Korea, Vanuatu, Japan, the Marshall Islands, Europe and the Maldives, Bangkok Post reports.
Wimol Jantrarotai, director-general of the Thai Fishery Department, said it is "unlikely" that tuna exports would continue to drop and that a rebound is largely contingent on how much raw tuna can be procured. Thailand imports as much as 85 per cent of 70,000-80,000 tonnes of the raw material required for production.
"Apart from the declining supply of tuna, limits on the number of tuna ships and pirate attacks have dampened the industry's prospects even as demand keeps rising in the global market," explained Wimol.
Catches of five major tuna species have idled at around 4.3-4.4 million tonnes in recent years due to declining stocks, noted Infofish.
Narin Niruttinanon, deputy general manager of Thai Union Manufacturing Co, thinks Thailand's tuna exports could continue to skid this year because the supply of raw material is limited.
Thai Union Frozen Products Plc (TUF) has noted that rising competition to secure imported raw materials has prompted the company to discount the possibility of major domestic expansion. The group requires 300,000 tonnes a year of tuna for local production, of which 80 per cent is sourced from the Pacific Ocean and the balance from the Indian Ocean.
"Countries with tuna in their territory encourage foreign companies to set up manufacturing facilities in their country to create employment, while access fees to catch tuna have risen from USD 200,000- USD 300,000 per ship per year to USD 1 million," said Narin.
Meanwhile, Greenpeace this week accused the tuna industry of continuing to push forward the decimation of fish stocks and called for an end to fishing methods that produce bycatch and urged “less boats, more fish” at the Infofish convention.
Five tuna species are already classed as "threatened" or "near threatened" with extinction due to overfishing, according to the Red List of Threatened Species.
“The tuna industry is on course to fishing itself out of existence. If we want healthy oceans and a viable tuna industry tomorrow, we simply need fewer boats on the water taking tuna,” said Sari Tolvanen, Greenpeace International oceans campaigner.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) The year 2025 marks the 30th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and the United States (1995–2025). In parallel with the nation's progress in international economic integration, bilateral seafood trade has followed a remarkably impressive growth trajectory, expanding from an initial scale of just tens of millions of US dollars to nearly $2 billion annually. This growth has positioned the United States as Vietnam’s largest seafood export market for many consecutive years.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) On December 12, 2025, the Vietnam Association of Seafood Processing and Export (VASEP) issued document 231/CV-VASEP regarding strengthening measures to combat IUU fishing and working with the Government to lift the EC's IUU yellow card warning.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Tilapia is easy to farm and provides high economic and nutritional value, making it a sought-after export commodity in many countries.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Vietnam’s seafood exports in the first 10 months of 2025 recorded significant progress, reaching more than USD 9.5 billion, up 15% year-on-year. This result reflects the sector’s persistent efforts amid a highly volatile market, especially policy shocks from the US Although signs of slowdown emerged in the third quarter due to countervailing taxes, key product groups still maintained strong momentum and created a foundation for full-year exports to reach USD 11 billion.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Vietnam’s agreement with the United States on a framework for reciprocal, fair, and balanced trade—reached during the 2025 ASEAN Summit in Malaysia—has generated strong optimism for Vietnamese exports, including tuna. Numerous positive points in the joint statement have raised high expectations for Vietnamese export goods, but turning these expectations into tangible benefits remains a long and challenging journey.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) At the conference on “Linking the Production and Consumption Chain of Ca Mau Crab 2025,” Vice Chairman of the Ca Mau Provincial People’s Committee Lê Văn Sử posed a central question: how to shift the province’s crab exports toward official trade channels, instead of relying heavily on small-scale border trade with China as currently practiced.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) The whitefish market in Japan is showing a clear divergence among supplying countries, in which Vietnam continues to affirm its role as a stable and high-potential exporter. Vietnam currently ranks third after the US and Russia in whitefish export value to Japan. Thanks to tariff incentives and the ability to meet Japan’s strict standards, Vietnamese pangasius continues to record a stable and positive growth trend.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) The People's Committee of Ca Mau Province has just issued a plan to expand the super-intensive, low-water-exchange, biosecure white-leg shrimp farming model (RAS-IMTA) for whiteleg shrimp farming to a scale of 1,500 hectares, aiming to develop high-tech, sustainable and environmentally friendly shrimp farming.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Sa Giang Import-Export Joint Stock Company (HNX: SGC) plans to issue over 7.1 million shares to raise nearly 465 Billion VND for Hoan Ngoc M&A Deal.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) According to Rabobank, global tilapia production is forecast to exceed 7 million tons in 2025, driven by a strong recovery in major producing countries including China, Indonesia, Egypt, Bangladesh and Vietnam. Among them, Vietnam is emerging as a potential tilapia supplier in the global supply chain, capitalizing on market fluctuations to expand production and exports.
VASEP - HIỆP HỘI CHẾ BIẾN VÀ XUẤT KHẨU THỦY SẢN VIỆT NAM
Chịu trách nhiệm: Ông Nguyễn Hoài Nam - Phó Tổng thư ký Hiệp hội
Đơn vị vận hành trang tin điện tử: Trung tâm VASEP.PRO
Trưởng Ban Biên tập: Bà Phùng Thị Kim Thu
Giấy phép hoạt động Trang thông tin điện tử tổng hợp số 138/GP-TTĐT, ngày 01/10/2013 của Bộ Thông tin và Truyền thông
Tel: (+84 24) 3.7715055 – (ext.203); email: kimthu@vasep.com.vn
Trụ sở: Số 7 đường Nguyễn Quý Cảnh, Phường An Phú, Quận 2, Tp.Hồ Chí Minh
Tel: (+84) 28.628.10430 - Fax: (+84) 28.628.10437 - Email: vasephcm@vasep.com.vn
VPĐD: số 10, Nguyễn Công Hoan, Ngọc Khánh, Ba Đình, Hà Nội
Tel: (+84 24) 3.7715055 - Fax: (+84 24) 37715084 - Email: vasephn@vasep.com.vn