Myanmar’s marine export items destined to the U.K. are mainly hilsa ilisha, gudgeon, mango fish, fork-tailed catfish and fresh- water herring in which ilisha fish, which is also called Yangon shad, gets high market demand in the country.

Myanmar’s marine products export to EU countries amounted to between 320,000 tons and 360,000 tons every year, the report quoted the Myanmar Fishery Department as saying, adding that the country has exported 476.48 tons of products in the first four months of this year.

Myanmar’s marine products exporting countries also include Middle East countries, South Korea, Japan and Argentina.

Meanwhile, EU experts came to Myanmar in February this year and tested on quality of fishery products from 22 fisheries-related cold storages in a bid to help raise the standard of the country’s marine exports to the European market.

In 2007-08, Myanmar exported 352,652 tons of marine products, gaining 561 million U.S. dollars, while in 2008-09, the export dropped to 483.23 million dollars due to the cyclone Nargis, statistics showed.

Myanmar targets to earn 700 million dollars’ marine export in the current fiscal year of 2009-2010.

Meanwhile, China topped Myanmar’s marine export country line-up, followed by Thailand, Japan and Singapore.

The country’s fishery sector remained as the fourth largest contributor to the gross domestic product and also the fourth largest source of foreign exchange earning during the past five years.