US aquaculture firm Australis willing to invest $1 bln in Vietnam

U.S.-based Australis Aquaculture is willing to invest $1 billion in sustainable growth in Vietnam, with a focus on the central coastal province of Khanh Hoa, said CEO Josh Goldman.

The executive made the statement while hosting Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Dang Quoc Khanh on Monday, during the minister’s visit to Australis’s barramundi farming areas in Van Phong bay, Khanh Hoa province.

Over-harvesting of aqua products and climate change are posing threats to the marine ecosystem, so Australis is striving to make better products while boosting environmental protection, Goldman said.

With four processing factories in Khanh Hoa province, the firm has an annual output of 10,000 tons of fish, 80% of which is exported to the U.S.

In reply, Minister Dang Quoc Khanh lauded Australis’s farming model, which deploys automation, a positioning system, round-the-clock remote surveillance, and cameras for observation.

Transitioning from traditional aquaculture farming to industrial aquaculture farming is the inevitable and sustainable path for Vietnam, Khanh highlighted, giving the example of the Party Central Committee’s Resolution 36-NQ/TW on the management of the marine ecosystem, near-shore areas, and islands.

During U.S. President Joe Biden’s visit to Vietnam in September 2023, Australis Aquaculture, among the world’s largest barramundi farmers, said it would invest an additional $100 million to expand its sustainable aquaculture operations in Van Phong bay.

As one of the earliest FDI investors in the Van Phong Economic Zone, Australis has received great support from the Khanh Hoa administration for over 15 years, and spent almost $200 million to apply the most advanced marine aquaculture technology.