Whiteleg Shrimp Prices Plunge to Record Lows, Testing Even Veteran Farmers

On August 4, Mr. Son Khiem—a shrimp farm owner in Vinh Chau Ward, Can Tho City—reported that whiteleg shrimp prices have continued to plummet in recent days. Having been in the shrimp farming business for nearly 30 years, Mr. Khiem stated he has never witnessed such a disastrous price drop.

Last month, 100-count/kg shrimp dropped to around 90,000 VND. I thought it had hit rock bottom and wouldn't decrease further, as it was already down 25,000 to 40,000 VND/kg compared to last year. Unexpectedly, prices kept falling over the past few days. Traders are currently buying at only around 80,000 VND/kg. This is an unprecedented, record-low slump, Mr. Khiem shared.

According to Mr. Khiem, with current market prices, even skilled farmers who achieve desired survival rates cannot make a profit.

Input costs for everything have risen. No matter how well you manage or apply advanced technology, the production cost for 1kg of shrimp is still around 80,000 VND. After deducting expenses, we are left empty-handed. Under these conditions, no one dares to risk stocking new crops, he worried.

Uncle Khanh, a shrimp farmer in Tran De Commune (Can Tho City), added that part of the reason for the sharp price drop in recent days is that local farmers are harvesting simultaneously in large volumes.

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