MALAYSIA - Malaysia's export of fish and other seafood is expected to double given the steady annual growth of 15 per cent in the aquaculture industry, according to the Fisheries Department.

Its director-general Datuk Ahamad Sabki Mahmood said aquaculture, which is still relatively new in the country, currently produces around 380,000 metric tonnes of fish and other seafood, reports TheSunDaily.

"At the rate this is going, we will soon be able to reach our target of 800,000 metric tonnes annually.

"This will enable us to double our export quantity, which is around 300,000 metric tonnes today," he said at a press conference after flagging off a media convoy heading to see the department's projects throughout the country yesterday.

"Although we're relatively young in this area, we're advancing and it is even growing faster than the population of the country, so it is sustainable," he said.

Ahamad Sabki further said the department had found that the deep-sea fishing industry was not growing fast enough to be profitable.

"We realise we cannot really depend on deep-sea fishing because it's not growing fast enough. Currently, it is producing around 1.3 to 1.4 million metric tonnes of fish and seafood.

"Our target is only 1.7 million metric tonnes, that is its maximum productivity, so we are focusing on aquaculture," he said.

Malaysia is currently the fifth-largest producer of fish and seafood through aquaculture in Asean, behind Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia and Viet Nam.

Seafood and fish are exported mainly to Europe, the United States, China, Japan and Singapore, while Malaysia imports around 200,000 metric tonnes from other countries.