Participants of the first ASC Summit to take place in Vietnam engaged with responsible farmers of shrimp and pangasius. Seafood buyers from across the globe embarked on a five-day commercial visit to Vietnam.
Vietnamese seafood exports play a significant role worldwide, notably regarding the availability of ASC labelled responsibly farmed shrimp and pangasius. There are currently in Vietnam more than 300 ASC certified shrimp farm sites, more than 50 ASC certified pangasius farm sites, an annual production of over 73,000 tonnes of ASC certified shrimp and close to 85,000 tonnes of ASC certified pangasius.
The farmed seafood industry is growing at a speedy pace internationally and, compounded by the fact that over half of all seafood eaten globally comes from aquaculture, ASC’s position is that it is more important than ever for responsible practices to be implemented. It is also crucial for key seafood decision-makers to have the chance to see these producers in action, ask questions, and engage in the discussion on the future of farmed seafood.
‘I would like to thank ASC for inviting me to the summit. Visiting various aquaculture farms abroad was a great experience, and witnessing how advanced the production facilities are was especially impressive. The knowledge gained throughout the activities carried out will inform our future decisions in purchasing a variety of seafood, including ASC certified shrimp,’ said Ssangjin Lee, fish buyer and ESG manager at Lottemart in Korea.
‘The ASC Summit series continues to offer an educational experience that no other organisation is providing at this level for responsibly farmed seafood,’ commented Marcos Moya, ASC’s global producer outreach lead.
‘We are connecting major retailers directly to the farmers whose seafood reaches the plates of consumers, and that is key to increasing positive impacts around environmental sustainability and social responsibility in aquaculture. Communicating the value behind ASC’s label is critical to ensuring responsibly farmed seafood comes with strong assurance, verification, and traceability from farm to store shelf.’
ASC’s Summit in Vietnam marked the final destination of the series for 2023, which earlier this year brought seafood buyers from around the globe to visit shrimp farms in Ecuador and seabass and seabream farms in Turkey.
