BioMar buys into Viet-Uc’s shrimp-feed business

Brande, Denmark-based BioMar has signed an agreement to acquire a majority stake in the shrimp feed business of Vietnam’s leading shrimp-breeding company, Viet-Uc Seafood Co.

A representative from Viet-Uc confirmed to SeafoodSource on 3 March the deal was signed on 2 March.

The transaction followed a non-legally binding deal the two sides inked in April last year. Under that memorandum of understanding, BioMar will become a major shareholder of Viet-Uc Aqua Feed Company and will operate its feed factory located in the Mekong Delta Province of Ben Tre.

The Viet-Uc representative declined to provide more details about the deal, which is pending approval from national authorities in Vietnam.

According to BioMar, the partnership will focus on producing high-end feed products to meet sustainability, traceability, and quality requirements of the shrimp industry.

“With this partnership, we open an important door into the Vietnamese market, one of the world’s leading shrimp-producing countries with a production close to 500,000 tons of shrimp,” BioMar CEO Carlos Diaz said in the statement. “Considering the performance and agility of the Vietnamese shrimp industry during the last decade and not at least during this last year of pandemic, I am sure the market holds a great potential for growth.”

Given higher demand for healthy and sustainable seafood, there will be more market share for high-end feed products. BioMar said it will soon be able to apply its research and development capacity and knowledge into production and offer new products to Vietnam market.

“Now, adding Vietnam into the equation will enable us to build a strong relationship both to the market in Vietnam but also to the nearby countries, and at the same time creating benefits from the relation between genetic and nutritional development,” Diaz said.

BioMar operates shrimp feed factories in Ecuador and Costa Rica. The company has been involved in the development of feed and technical services for the shrimp industry since 2012.

Photo courtesy of BioMar