Malaysian state works to meet EU seafood standards

The Sabah government is considering requiring all seafood farms and seafood product manufacturers in the state to adopt standardised practices according to the requirements of the EU in order to meet global demand.

Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Yahya Hussin, who is also State Agriculture and Food Industry Minister, said the measure was to ensure that the farms and the manufacturers met the market's expectations in case the EU requirement became a global requirement for export one day.

"Complying with EU standards is very important as its member countries are Sabah's largest trading partners. We must try to meet with the requirement now before it becomes a global thing," Hussin said.

According to him, the EU banned fish exports from Sabah in April 2008 due to manufacturers and farms not complying with its standards and regulations.

He said Sabah had formed the Market Access Group Committee, headed by the State Health Department and involving the State Fisheries Department, Malaysian Fisheries Development Authority (LKIM) and the State Chemistry Department, to implement programmes that would ensure seafood farms and manufacturing premises met EU standards.

Warisan Hikmat is the only seafood farm in Sabah that has earned EU certification and is allowed to export its white prawns and tiger prawns to the member countries.  The farm exported 1,500 tonnes of prawns to the EU at MYR11,000 per tonne.