Pangasius AIP
Vietnamese Pangasius
Aquaculture Improvement Project
Species:
basa (Pangasius bocourti)
tra (also called “swai” (Pangasionodon hypophthalmus)
AIP Region:
Can Tho, Vinh Long, An Giang, and Dong Thap provinces. SFP conducted scoping in these four concentrated, pangasius-farming regions in southern Vietnam, and confirmed that they are the most suitable for an AIP.
Source: De Silva, Sena S., and Nguyen T. Phuong 2011. Striped catfish farming in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam: a tumultuous path to a global success. Reviews in Aquaculture 3: 45–73.
Sustainability Information:
NGOs are not in agreement on the sustainability of Vietnamese pangasius:
World Wildlife Fund (WWF) in Germany rates Vietnamese pangasius as red;
Monterey Bay Aquarium (MBA Seafood Watch - National Guide) ranks farmed pangasius as yellow (good alternative).
Date Launched: 2010
Background:
Over 80 percent of Vietnamese pangasius (catfish) production is located in the Mekong Delta near branches of the lower Mekong, Tien Giang, and Hau Giang rivers, spanning the provinces of An Giang, Dong Thap, Can Tho, and Vinh Long. Development of better farming systems, hatcheries (with high-quality broodstock), and commercial feeds has resulted in tremendous growth in Vietnamese pangasius production over the past decade. Currently, average production of Vietnamese pangasius per hectare is among the highest in the world at 269 metric tons per crop or as much as 500 to 600 metric tons per hectare of yearly output. In 2010 alone, Vietnam produced 1.14 million metric tons (2.5 billion pounds live weight) of pangasius.
Source: FAO
Farming operations are trending toward a more integrated facility, however small-scale farms still represent the largest percentage of farms. In 2009, there were 4,416 household farms of less than 1 hectare (water surface), 812 farms between 1 and 5 hectares, and 165 farms over 5 hectares. The largest farms range up to 40 hectares in water surface. Total land area devoted to pangasius farming in Vietnam is approximately 6,000 to 7,000 hectares.
Globally, Vietnamese pangasius has found a solid niche as a value-priced whitefish. In 2010, Vietnam exported 659,000 metric tons of pangasius worth US $1.43 billion to 140 markets worldwide (Source: VASEP). The leading markets are the European Union (35.8%), United States (12.4%), and ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries (5.5%). While the EU is the leading pangasius market, the United States is the leading import country, with 49,000 metric tons imported in 2010, worth US $176 million. Pangasius now ranks tenth in per capita seafood consumption in the United States.
Sustainability Issues
Major sustainability issues of Vietnamese pangasius are:
- Farm effluents. Effluent from pangasius farms directly affects the quality of the water in the natural environment. Although treatment ponds are required by the national government, many pangasius producers do not have them. The amount of feeds and other nutrients being discharged into the water system may be significantly higher than expected.
- Diseases and antibiotic use. Antibiotics are still commonly used in pangasius farms, though this practice is not documented. Although results of the monitoring conducted by SFP from 2007 through 2009 showed an insignificant amount of residue, this issue still needs to be examined and monitored, as producers are using drugs and antibiotics.
- Feed sourcing and feed efficiency. Fishfeed is one of the biggest investments in the pangasius industry and it is also one of the contributors to the deterioration of water quality. The current feed conversion ratio of 1.6 represents a significant opportunity for improvement.
- Economics. The market has dictated the success of the pangasius industry for the past decade. The price of the product has been erratic and it has directly affected the growth of the industry.
For further details about issues relating to Vietnamese pangasius, see White Paper on Vietnamese Pangasius Farming.
SFP Engagement in Vietnamese Pangasius Aquaculture to Date:
SFP has been working in Vietnam since 2007 to develop a better understanding of the current state of pangasius aquaculture with an emphasis on potential environmental issues. SFP has also implemented a benchmarking project (with a report currently undergoing review) to conduct farm audits against the current international standards to identify how the standards’ criteria are aligned and where they differ. During this period, SFP has been in close collaboration with Can Tho University/College of Fisheries and Aquaculture and very recently with ICAFIS (International Collaboration Center for Aquaculture and Fisheries Sustainability). Together with SFP, these two organizations are working to promote responsible farming, as well as to address existing issues in the pangasius industry.
Previous and current activities include:
Water quality research with Can Tho University: SFP implemented a project to monitor water effluents of pangasius farms in the region. The 11 farms monitored were located at a variety of distances from the Mekong River (ranging from close to the river to between tributaries). Our findings indicate that some farms in the region are exceeding both the national regulations and the existing international standard. We shared the results of this research with several stakeholders during meetings developing water quality requirements for the ASC/PAD standard, as well as at a workshop with producers and other interested organizations working on improving the pangasius industry. The report is intended to be translated into the local language in order to widen its outreach to stakeholders, including small-scale operators.
Measuring Regional Environmental Impact Workshop: SFP, in collaboration with ICAFIS and Can Tho University/College of Aquaculture and Fisheries (CTU/CAF), conducted a workshop to review several assessments conducted in the pangasius industry/aquaculture farms and to develop a checklist that can be used in assessing the environmental impact of pangasius farms. This workshop included representatives from the environment department of several local organizations in Vietnam. The output of the workshop is a set of recommendations to be used during a regional assessment.
Pangasius Farming Standards benchmarking: SFP led the implementation of the field-based comparison of the three main pangasius standards (ASC, GLOBALG.A.P, and GAA/BAP) in 11 farms located in the southern part of Vietnam (Can Tho, Vinh Long, An Giang, and Dong Thap). This exercise was completed in early August and a report is being finalized. The report from this comparison will be made public and should be of particular use for those involved with standard-setting as well as seafood buyers and retailers.
The study identified 20 issues addressed by all the three schemes relating to the environment, sanitation, drug and chemical use, social concerns, and traceability. Categorizing the requirements for each scheme determined that the basic fundamental requirements for all three schemes relate to legal issues and the preventive measures taken to reduce the frequency of risk events. Risk avoidance (i.e., setting environmental thresholds) is the most critical level of requirements for an aquaculture standard.
Since several issues/requirements were identified as similar among the schemes, there is some potential for creating equivalencies or harmonization among them. The pangasius industry is an export-targeted industry where certification and/or standards are critical. Creating a harmonized or equivalency pangasius standard would assist not only the producers and small-scale farmers but also the consumers in determining practices that would help to ensure the sustainability of the pangasius industry.
AIP Development
The goal of the Vietnamese Pangasius AIP is to reduce or mitigate the potential cumulative and combined impacts of pangasius farming practices that can arise from poor water usage practices, over-density of farms, inappropriate zoning/siting, inefficient feed management, and insufficient coordination of disease incidences and treatments. AIPs can also serve as forums in which farmers share lessons learned regarding better practices and can work together to press for improvements in other sectors that impact their operations, such as non-point source pollution from upstream agriculture or industry.
The Vietnamese Pangasius AIP does not serve as a standard or certification process and does not intend to certify producers in the region, but will work with farmers within a designated region to a certifiable level in terms of management practice in farming pangasius. Specific activities within the Vietnamese Pangasius AIP include:
1. Awareness campaign on sustainability issues and recommendations
2. Region-wide environmental impact assessment
3. Networking with responsible producers
4. Continuous monitoring of the industry through site visits
5. Capacity-building for important players in the industry
6. Collection and dissemination of better management practices (BMPs) that are applicable in the region
7. Linking the supply chain to better promote sustainability.
Contact:
If you would like more information about the AIP or wish to support the AIP, please contact SFP
