Vietnam Clean Seafood Corporation, based in Can Tho City, has completed its first shipment of tilapia fillets to Japan in July for use in sushi and sashimi.
Tilapia is gradually becoming a key farmed product in many localities across the Mekong Delta region (Photo: Nam Binh).
According to Vo Van Phuc, the company's chief executive, the products have received positive feedback from Japanese customers for their quality and flavour.
The company plans to expand exports of value-added tilapia products beyond Japan to the United States, Canada and other international markets.
"Many international customers have praised the quality of our tilapia fillets. We will therefore expand our farming area to meet growing demand while ensuring full traceability of raw materials," Phuc said.
Vietnamese tilapia fillets are exported to Japan for sushi preparation (Photo: VNC).
Industry observers believe the global market for tilapia fillets still offers substantial growth potential. Climate change has made marine fish farming increasingly difficult in many countries, leading to higher mortality rates and rising production costs. By contrast, Vietnam's brackish coastal waters provide favourable conditions for large scale tilapia farming.
The shipment to Japan comes as tilapia has emerged as one of the fastest growing segments of Vietnam's seafood industry.
During the first five months of 2026, Vietnam's tilapia exports reached USD 62 million, more than doubling compared with the same period last year.
Brazil remained the largest overseas market for Vietnamese tilapia. Exports to the country totalled around USD 8 million in May alone, bringing the five month total to USD 34 million, accounting for more than half of Vietnam's total tilapia export value during the period.
Industry experts expect exports to Japan to reduce the sector's reliance on a limited number of traditional markets while increasing the share of higher value added seafood products.
Vietnam is currently capable of producing about 1.4 billion tilapia fingerlings each year (Photo: Nam Binh).
According to the fisheries sector, Vietnam produced around 420,000 tonnes of tilapia in 2025, an increase of approximately 33 per cent from the previous year. The country currently has the capacity to produce about 1.4 billion tilapia fingerlings annually and operates around 510 export certified seafood processing facilities, providing a strong foundation for expanding the production of processed seafood for international markets.
