January 9, 2012

Vietnam to constrict control of antibiotic use in shrimp farming

In an offer to ensure food safety, Vietnam should constrict control of antibiotic over usage in shrimp raising, a local expert said to the Minister of Agricultural and Rural Development (MARD).

Engineer Hoang Thanh Vu, working in a laboratory of a shrimp processing firm in the Mekong Delta, proposed the ministry not to allow farmers using Enrofloxacin and Ciprofloxacin in shrimp hatching.

Vu said that Vietnamese farmers use two much antibiotics in shrimp cultivation to protect their crop.

However, some importers including the US, Japan and Canada never accept shrimp products containing high residue of antibiotics, Vu said, warning that Vietnam is likely to lose markets once the situation will not be improved.

In 2011, the US and Japan forced the company where Vu works to get back exported shrimp batches due to high content of the two antibiotics.

Vietnam produced 632,900 tonnes of shrimp in 2011, up 6.8% from the previous year, the MARD said.

Vietnam-sourced shrimp products are shipped to many foreign markets, including the US, Japan, South Korea, China, Russia, EU, Australia and Canada.