Vietnam does not subsidise shrimp farming
(VOV) - The Vietnamese shrimp farming industry has operated according to the market mechanism for years, and it does not receive any government subsidies.
Tran Thien Hai, Chairman of the Vietnam Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), made the affirmation in an interview granted to Thanh Nien newswire on December 30.
Hai said he was surprised upon learning US shrimp producers had lodged an anti-subsidy claim against Vietnamese shrimp imports with the US Department of Commerce (DOC).
He said VASEP has already contacted its members and consulted its lawyers in case the lawsuit is accepted.
However, VASEP has yet to receive any official word from the DOC.
Late last week, US shrimp producers asked the DOC to impose anti-dumping tariffs on shrimp imports from China, Vietnam, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Ecuador.
Shrimp is one of Vietnam’s major seafood exports, and VASEP predicted that shrimp exports would drop 6.3 percent to US$2.25 billion in 2012.