May 4, 2007

Vietnam fishery group urge exporters to provide information on raw material source

The National Fishery Quality and Veterinary Directorate Agency (Nafiqaved) has appealed to Vietnamese seafood exporters to provide enough information on their exports particularly those bound to major market EU.

Nafiqaved has requested to present the origin of consignments of products made from imported materials. 

Vietnamese enterprises have resorted to imports for raw materials due to shortage.

According to Nafiqaved, thorough inspection of production consignments bound to EU made from imported materials is important. The agency said imported raw materials are probable source of Infectious Salmon anaemia-ISA, Epizootic haematopoietic necrosis-EHN, Infectious haematopoietic necrosis-IHN, and Viral haemorrhagic septicaemia.

As of May 2007, Nafiqaved will inspect and grant certificates on food quarantine on exports to the EU under the new form. The new form of certificate was disseminated by the EU Commission on November last year, and the new form application has been slated for May 1, 2007.

The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) said the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare had issued a warning about on Vietnamese seafood exporters as it discovered levels of banned chloramphenicol to its recent shipments of seafood exports.

VASEP has asked seafood processors to examine thoroughly exports to Japan before shipping to the country, otherwise it may lose the lucrative Japanese market.