February 7, 2007

US catfish growers want stricter laws and higher standards against foreign catfish

Catfish growers in the US state of Alabama in the US are calling for their state to support a federal farm bill that would impose more restrictions on importers who bring fish from Vietnam and China into the United States.

The proposals would step up examination and testing and require better labeling of imported fish from the two countries. Another provision would require all countries to have labour, health and environmental standards for agricultural production similar to those in the United States to get free trade deals.

Current production standards in Vietnam do not compare to those in the US.

Vietnamese farmers are also not burdened by strict environmental rules in the US and they use antibiotics which would have been banned in the country.  Although the antibiotic is not harmful to consumers, experts fear its use can lead to antibiotic-resistant germs.

As for China, more than 20 catfish shipments had been blocked from entering the United States due to the presence of banned chemicals, including malachite green.

While Vietnam raises its own species of tra and basa catfish, the Chinese are raising American catfish, purchased from Arkansas, bred and raised in China.

Catfish imports into the US are growing at a breakneck pace.

US imports of Vietnamese catfish nearly doubled last year to 7.7 million pounds.

Although the Chinese are relatively new to the market, their potential is considerably larger. Even though Chinese catfish imports are at 2.5 million pounds, three times smaller than that for Vietnamese catfish, they have shot up 20-fold over the past three years.