Seafood has been a favorite meal around the world with a rich source of essential nutrients and exquisite flavors. When it comes to sourcing seafood, one region that has become the international export hub is Southeast Asia. This article will explain why sourcing seafood from Southeast Asia is an excellent choice.

Typical seafood products exported from Southeast Asia

S.E.A is famous for different seafood products. Some typical seafood products exported from this area are below:

• Shrimp: S.E.A is one of the largest producers and exporters of shrimp worldwide from Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia with various types of shrimp like black tiger shrimp, white shrimp, vannamei shrimp.
• Tuna: Indonesia and the Philippines are two outstanding countries where yellowfin tuna, skipjack tuna, and bigeye tuna are commonly exported in both fresh and canned products.
• Crab: Mud crab and blue swimming crab are among the most prevalent seafood exports from Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Thailand.
• Squid and Cuttlefish: Squid and Cuttlefish are mostly exported fresh and frozen from Vietnam, Thailand, and the Philippines.
• Fish fillets: Fillets of various species like tilapia, pangasius, and grouper are mainly processed and frozen to export to international markets.
• Lobsters: If you are looking for spiny lobsters, aka rock lobsters, check Vietnam and Indonesia for supply.
• Value-added seafood products: S.E.A also the hub of a wide range of value-added seafood products, such as fish balls, fish and shrimp paste, surimi-based products, and processed seafood snacks.

Advantages of sourcing seafood from Southeast Asia

1. Abundant marine resources: with the diverse marine ecosystems, S.E.A can provide a wide range of seafood options for both wild-caught and farmed products. Buyers can choose from a various species, sizes, and preparations to meet their specific needs.
2. Competitive pricing: The rich supplies above and low production costs due to economies of scale contribute to the competitive pricing, making it attractive to buyers.
3. High-quality products: S.E.A countries have a long history and culture of seafood cuisine and production, leading to well-established fishing and aquaculture industries. Thus, the entire process is managed professionally from seafood handling, processing, and packaging, and shipping.
4. Sustainable supply: Realizing that sustainable development means the long-term success, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines have conducted serious efforts to support and achieve sustainability in fishing and aquaculture industries, such as certification programs like Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) and Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) that actively working with local seafood producers.
5. World-class supply chains: Southeast Asian countries have well-developed logistics and infrastructure networks to support the export of seafood products. This ensures efficient and reliable delivery to global markets, minimizing delays and maintaining product freshness.
6. Potential for customization and value-added products: S.E.A seafood suppliers often have the capacity to provide customized products and value-added processing. This flexibility allows for tailored solutions, such as portioning, marinating, and packaging, to meet specific customer requirements.

How to find the best seafood suppliers in Southeast Asia

There are several approaches to find the most appropriate suppliers in S.E.A.

• Search tools like Google can help to introduce most of suppliers in the market. However, not many suppliers can communicate well in English and their online presence (e.g. website, social media) are not highly responsive.
• Tradeshow: This is the place where companies with high credibility and reputation gather to display their capability, thus you can access them at the event easily. However, the number of tradeshows for seafood during a year is quite limited. Also, since the majority of participants in the tradeshow are big suppliers, they usually ask for the high minimum quantity of order which is sometimes an obstacle for S&M buyers.
• Associations: Some local seafood associations can help to connect you with local suppliers. However, the responsive rate is quite random and there is no classification of the suppliers which can take you a lot of time to evaluate them.
• Having a professional handle this: A local service provider who has local experience and expertise is capable of sourcing decent suppliers for you. It would be the best if this partner can help to manage the supplier audit, factory verification, quality inspection and testing, which facilitates your procurement in Vietnam. At HQTS, we offer one-stop service from sourcing, supplier audit, factory verification, quality inspection and testing, etc.

Conclusion: Why is Southeast Asia a good place for seafood sourcing?

With plenty of advantages from natural resources, skillful production, and other superior factors, Southeast Asia is the ideal destination for seafood sourcing. If you are looking for seafood suppliers or manufacturers in this region and need to do quality inspection or testing, contact us today for enthusiastic and professional consultancy.