HCM CITY – With a population of over 90 million and rising incomes and demand for quality poultry products, Việt Nam is a promising market for the Polish poultry industry, according to the general director of that country’s National Poultry Council – Chamber of Commerce.

Speaking at a seminar in HCM City on Tuesday, Lukasz Dominiak, citing US Department of Agriculture figures, said Việt Nam’s annual poultry consumption rose by 79 per cent between 2002 and 2012 to 7.6 kilogrammes per capita.

The trend is expected to continue, he said.

According to figures from the European Commission, there has been rapid growth in EU poultry exports to Việt Nam in the last three years, going up from 13,409 tonnes worth 7.3 million euros (US$8.1 million) to 26,457 tonnes worth 23.28 million euros ($25.84 million) last year. 

Jaroslaw Olowski, deputy president of the Agricultural Market Agency, a government arm, said Poland’s agricultural-food exports to Việt Nam had not met expectations and remained modest at around 100 million euros ($111 million) last year, with dairy products (32 per cent), fish and fish products (30 per cent), feedstuff (17 per cent), and meat, offal and meat products including poultry (9 per cent) making up the bulk of them.

As the largest poultry producer in EU, Poland seeks to export to Việt Nam, he said. 

Dominiak said the National Poultry Council – Chamber of Commerce is implementing an information and promotional programme called ”European poultry – the power of quality” in target markets like Việt Nam, the United Arab Emirates, mainland China and Hong Kong to promote the advantages, quality and production methods of European poultry that conforms to the QAFP (Quality Assurance for Food Products) system.

The main goal of the three-year campaign (2016- 19) is to increase exports of European poultry to the target markets and deepen knowledge of the quality, taste value and production standards there, he said.

Europe is famous for its quality poultry as a result of breeding based on stringent EU regulations and the care given to every element of the food chain, he said, pointing out that the QAFP stands additional guarantee to the quality.

As part of efforts to introduce and promote Polish poultry in Việt Nam, several companies are showcasing their products at the four-day Vietfood and Beverage-Propack international exhibition which opened yesterday at HCM City’s Sài Gòn Exhibition and Convention Centre. 

Visitors would have the opportunity to watch cooking shows and taste delicious poultry dishes at the show, he said.

Poland is looking for prestigious Vietnamese poultry distributors to promote its exports, he said.

According to the Department of Livestock Production, Việt Nam imports 100,000-120,000 tonnes of poultry products annually, of which 90 per cent is chicken meat. — VNS