May 9, 2007

Thai seafood making waves in Europe

Thai seafood products were making waves at the European Seafood Exposition 2007 held from April 24-26 at the Brussels Exhibition Centre.

With over 1,600 exhibitors from more than 77 countries, the European exhibition is the biggest seafood event in Europe.

With seafood scares and antibiotic concerns, Thailand's seafood industry was eager to assure their European buyers on quality assurance, Thailand's The Nation newspaper reports. This reflects Thailand's confidence in the high quality of its products, the newspaper said.

Fifteen Thai firms showcased products ranging from raw seafood to semi-finished and processed products in the same pavilion, which was four times larger than the previous year's.

Thailand's contingent also provided information on safety controls and standards, including Q-Mark certification and traceability programmes. The pilot TraceShrimp project, which allows importers to trace the shrimp production chain from farms to distribution online, was also demonstrated. The transparency of the system served to reassure importers on the safety of Thai food, the newspaper said.

European importers confirmed that Thailand's continual efforts in striving for top quality were paying off, with several importers saying they were impressed with Thai seafood.

A number of Thai exporters have already invested in research and development aimed at meeting three current consumer trends: sustainability, convenience and healthiness

One is Surerath Farms, the first organic shrimp farm in Thailand and a finalist in the prestigious Seafood Prix d'Elite awards.