February 27, 2014

Vietnam to resume offal imports

Vietnam has informed the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service that it will accept pork offal exports from the US, reports WNAX Radio.

In order to lift the ban on American pork variety meat exports, the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) negotiated diligently with US and Vietnamese government officials, said Nick Giordano, NPPC vice president and international trade counsel.

Vietnam is an important market for US pork, Giordano says, and NPPC is also working with them as part of the Trans Pacific Partnership discussions. Both parties are trying to achieve elimination of all tariffs and non-tariff barriers.

Vietnam is second only to Japan as a US pork customer in the Far East, Giordano says.

Meanwhile, Vietnam announced recently that they will lift the remaining ban on EU's white offal. However, at the same time, Vietnam is imposing several new conditions on imports of white offal, such as: a limitation to use only three ports of entry into Vietnam and additional registration and certification requirements. Trading partners have not been consulted on these new measures and it remains to be seen whether exports of offal will now take place in trade friendly conditions.

In July 2010 Vietnam introduced a ban on imports of animal offal. This ban, which was imposed without prior consultation or notification to trading partners, was considered by the EU, not to be in line with WTO rules and resulted in an abrupt and unjustified halt of offal exports from the EU to Vietnam.

Vietnam justified the ban on the ground that it was necessary to ensure food safety and hygiene for consumers. They explained that it had been adopted in response to a number of cases of contaminated offal, imported into Vietnam between 2010 and 2011, although they further confirmed that there had not been problems with offal imported from the EU. Therefore, the EU considered this global import ban to be disproportionate, not necessary and not justified for imports from the EU.

Following continued concerns expressed by the EU and other trading partners, Vietnam partially lifted its ban in spring 2011 for so-called red offal (heart, kidney and liver) of pork and poultry and for bovine red offal.

The European Commission is pleased to note the recent decision of Vietnam to lift the remaining ban and sees this as a positive step from Vietnam to allow imports of safe offal from the EU. However, Vietnam now needs to make every effort to ensure that the new requirements are in accordance with its international obligations.

The European Commission and the EU Delegation in Hanoi will continue to work together with the Vietnamese authorities on outstanding barriers in order to resolve them in a practical manner and on a permanent basis.