Vietnam's total seafood exports passed USD 11 billion in 2025, according to figures reported by VASEP and Vietnamese trade press. Latin America takes a modest share of that total, and most of it goes to two destinations: Brazil and Mexico. Buyers who think only about the US, EU and Japan tend to overlook both, and that leaves price information on the table.
Why these two markets matter
Brazil and Mexico buy different things for different reasons. Brazil is a large consumer market with a long coastline but a heavy dependence on imported white fish. Pangasius fillet has been the main Vietnamese product there for years, sold mostly through retail and foodservice as a low-cost alternative to hake and other whitefish. Mexico is more mixed: pangasius and tilapia fillet for foodservice, plus some shrimp and cephalopods for processors. When I compare quotes for the same fillet spec, the Latin American price expectation sits below the EU and US range, so a factory that hits Brazilian pricing usually has little room for premium certifications.
Market access: one agreement, one gap
Mexico and Vietnam are both CPTPP members. The agreement entered into force for Mexico on 30 December 2018 and for Vietnam on 14 January 2019, and Vietnamese seafood benefits from a tariff schedule that phases down duties on most lines. Check the specific tariff line and the origin documentation your Mexican importer needs, because the preference only applies when the paperwork is complete.
Brazil is different. Vietnam does not have a free trade agreement with Brazil, so Vietnamese seafood pays the normal Mercosur external tariff plus Brazilian import taxes. That makes landed cost sensitive to freight and glaze weight rather than to duty planning. If a Brazilian importer asks for a CIF price, ask which tax assumptions sit behind their target, because the gap between a quote and the shelf price is often larger than in other markets.
Plant approval and documents
Both countries expect the plant to be known to the importing authority, not just to hold an HACCP certificate. In Brazil, foreign establishments exporting animal-origin food need to be listed by the agriculture ministry's inspection service, and the importer will want to confirm your factory is on the approved list before a purchase order is issued. In Mexico, the importer works with the national agrifood health authority and the health regulator for border clearance. I have seen shipments wait at the port because a plant name on the health certificate did not match the registered name. Review the certificate against the plant registration before the container is loaded, not after.
Spec points that differ from the EU and US
Glaze is the main commercial argument. Latin American importers often ask for net weight after thawing, and some refuse to accept more than a stated glaze percentage. Fillet size grading and packing format also vary. Brazilian retail packs, for example, tend to use smaller retail-ready bags, while foodservice buyers take 10 kg cartons with interleaved layers. Put the glaze method, tolerance, and re-test rule in the contract, and agree who pays for a re-test if the result is disputed.
Payment and shipping add a further layer. Transit from Ho Chi Minh City to Santos or Manzanillo is long, usually several weeks including transshipment, and cold chain discipline matters more than the headline price. Ask the forwarder which port rotation they use and how many transshipment stops there are, since each stop is a temperature risk.
What this means for buyers
If you are a buyer outside Latin America, treat Brazil and Mexico as a price reference for pangasius and tilapia, not as a premium market. If you are sourcing for a Latin American customer, start with plant approval and documentation, then agree glaze and net weight terms before you negotiate price. I would shortlist two or three plants that already ship to the region and ask each for their last few approved health certificates, with commercial details removed, before comparing quotes.
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