Compared to frozen goods, live snow crab is three times more expensive and the quantity imported to Vietnam is limited.
Mr. Tran Van Truong - director of a fresh seafood import business in Ho Chi Minh City - said that during this holiday, he officially imported 2 tons of fresh snow crabs from Korea by plane. Each crab weighs 1-1.5kg.
This is the largest official shipment of fresh crabs ever. At VND1.7 million per kilogram, each 1.5 kg snow crab costs VND2.5-2.6 million.
According to Mr. Truong, most of the snow crabs on the market are frozen. This type is difficult to preserve and lives in a cold environment, so without adequate specialized preservation tools, the crabs will quickly suffocate and the quality of the meat will decrease. Therefore, compared to frozen snow crabs, live crabs are 2-3 times more expensive.
Previously, this type of crab was also imported by a chain of stores in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi for sale at VND2.1 million per kilogram but in limited quantities. The goods originated from Russia, Canada and Norway, but the units chose to import directly from Korea to reduce shipping time.
Live snow crabs are sold at a seafood shop in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Thi Ha
According to Mr. Huynh Van Dat, a customer in District 1 (HCMC), fresh crab meat is sweet and chewy, not as soft as frozen crab meat. In addition, fresh snow crab meat has a more distinctive aroma.
In the market, according to customs data, the number of businesses importing live snow crabs officially is very small, about 1-2 units with a quantity of only about 2-5 tons. As for frozen goods, the import volume is up to hundreds of tons, of which, most are imported snow crab legs. The retail price of frozen snow crabs on the market is 450,000-800,000 VND per kg (depending on size).
In February, sharing with VnExpress , Mr. Steve Craig, Minister of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources of Nova Scotia (Canada), said that snow crab was in the top 5 Canadian seafood products imported the most into Vietnam in 2022. In total, Vietnam spent 65 million USD to import Canadian seafood last year. This figure doubled compared to 2021 and tripled the turnover in 2020.
According to Mr. Steve Craig, Vietnamese seafood consumption is among the highest in the world with an average output of up to 37 kg per person per year.
Thi Ha
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