June 23, 2014
Vietnam remains top shrimp supplier to Japan
Vietnam remains the top shrimpsupplier to Japan, despite the speculation that Japan could increase the import from India and Indonesia after the detection of Oxytetracycline (OTC) in shrimp imported from Vietnam in mid-March 2014.
According to statistics of International Trade Centre (ITC), Vietnam shrimp exports to Japan soared 32% in value from January to April. However, it was downed 40% in volume, due to Japan's OTC inspection on Vietnam's shrimp.
During the same period, Japan's shrimp imports from Thailand dropped 42% in volume and 35% in value, while imports from Indonesia and India fell by 41% and 10% in volume; 39% and 17.5% in value, respectively.
Vietnam is the largest producer of black tiger shrimp with stable output, giving the country an advantage over other suppliers.
Through April 2014, the number of Vietnamese shrimp shipments to Japan that exceeded permitted limits of OTC residues was reduced significantly from four in March to one in April.