September 29, 2006

Kuwait bans shrimps from Pakistan

Kuwait has banned Pakistan's seafood after a consignment was rated below quality and suspected of containing cholera-causing bacteria, Pakistani officials said Thursday (Sep 29). 

Pakistan's export figures to the Middle East are not very significant but it would investigate the charges, Tariq Ikram, Chairman of the Export Promotion Bureau said.

The Kuwaiti commerce and industrial ministry also banned Iranian seafood on the same health grounds.

Exporters say the ban is a major blow to the industry and it stands to lose more than US$30 million in the next few months, Faisal Iftikhar, Vice Chairman of the Pakistan Seafood Industries Association said.

Pakistan has been trying to make inroads into the Middle East market for years and the latest development could undermine consumer confidence, Iftikhar said.

Pakistan's seafood exports grew an impressive 40 percent last fiscal year to reach US$196.15 million by June 2006 as demand strengthened from the European countries.

Sardar Hanif Khan, Chairman of the Pakistan Seafood Industries Association, said the charges may not be as serious as originally thought as the bacteria probably  emerged during transportation and handling. He also added that Kuwait is still open to discussions and the two sides would be setting up a meeting next week.