Seafood varieties determine production efficiency
In the picture of agricultural, forestry and fishery exports in 2025, seafood continues to be a bright spot when maintaining a growth rate of 13.2% with an export value of 10.38 billion USD (as of November 2025).
Mr. Tran Dinh Luan - Director of the Department of Fisheries and Fisheries Control (Ministry of Agriculture and Environment) - said that from 2024 to present, the aquaculture industry continues to face many difficulties.
"In that context, breeds play a key role, determining production efficiency and sustainable growth ability" - the Director of the Department of Fisheries and Fisheries Control emphasized.
In the aquaculture value chain, seeds are the first link, directly affecting productivity, cost and production efficiency. In particular, in the context of drought, saline intrusion, storms and floods, the requirement for breeds that can adapt to unfavorable conditions becomes more urgent than ever. Clean, saline-resistant, and heat-resistant breeds not only help farmers stabilize production but also create conditions for the seafood industry to meet increasingly high standards of biological safety and traceability.
Talking to Lao Dong, Mr. Phu Dien - Chairman of the Long Phu Thuan Freshwater Fish shop (Dong Thap) - said that selecting fish through many rounds helps fish grow well, resist high diseases, and adapt better to changing environments. However, the most difficult problem at present is not only climate change but also pressure to chase output and price competition.
According to Mr. Nguyen Thanh Phong - Deputy Head of the Agricultural Extension and Agricultural Service Station of Hong Ngu 2 area (Dong Thap), aquaculture variety production is not currently facing difficulties in terms of varieties or farming capacity, but the biggest problem is the lack of reproductive stimulants for fish.
"Many effective drugs have stopped being produced domestically, while imported drugs are not yet permitted. People have to use floating drugs, making it difficult to control quality and risk damage to farmed fish, and at the same time facing the risk of being fined for not having legal origin" - Mr. Nguyen Thanh Phong analyzed.
Investing in seeds creates a foundation for long-term growth
Looking towards the period of 2026 - 2030, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Environment Phung Duc Tien stated that the aquaculture industry will continue to face many new challenges, requiring Vietnam to have a longer-term and more sustainable development strategy. To realize the goal of having 12 billion USD in seafood export turnover by 2030, developing high-quality seafood varieties is identified as a key task.
From 2010 to present, the State budget has invested nearly 900 billion VND in 271 science and technology tasks, focusing on selecting varieties with rapid growth rate and disease resistance. Notably, the achievement of creating a herd of pangasius of generation G5 is 15.4% faster than that of generation G4. Proactively produce flocks of breeding female shrimp of generation G7 and white-leg shrimp of generation G8-G9, with domestically breeding female shrimp that can achieve the breeding capacity of 800,000 to 1,200,000 larvae per generation.
The 1, 2 and 3 Institute for Aquaculture Research also reported on mastering the technology of producing breeds for 23 high-value marine fish species, while successfully producing millions of trans fern and crab breeds to serve the market. In 2026, the Department of Fisheries and Fisheries Control sets a target of 390-410 billion total species of all kinds produced.
Director Tran Dinh Luan said that key solutions include modernizing production infrastructure, applying a circular filtering system and automatic monitoring sensors. Digital transformation will be promoted through the completion of the national database on breeds, seafood and electronic traceability.
