Data shows that shark catfish shipments in the first five months of 2020 plunged by 39.1% to US$456 million, with exports to China, the EU and the United States down by 48%, 47.3% and 19.8%, respectively.
As the sector is not expected to fully recover until the third quarter, measures are needed to develop the domestic market.
The shark catfish event is the beginning of a series of marketing sessions to be held to promote fishery products in Hanoi in 2020, aiming to help enterprises in the sector to overcome the coronavirus-induced difficulties.
MARD said it is working with the Ministry of Industry and Trade, trade associations, local supermarkets and distribution networks to boost shark catfish sales in Vietnam.
The ministry is also engaged in trade promotion activities to bolster exports to established markets while dealing with technical barriers and utilising trade agreements to develop potential markets such as Russia and Brazil.
Speaking at the event, MARD Minister Nguyen Xuan Cuong stated that developing the domestic market can help reduce the pressure on exports while offering a wider choice for local consumers.
At the event, cooperation agreements were signed between catfish producers and supermarket chains.
