February 11, 2011

 

EU countries remove Vietnam's pangasius fish from red list

 

 

All European countries has removed Vietnam's pangasius fish out of World Wild Fund (WWF)'s red list, the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) said.

 

In late 2010, WWF offices in some European countries including Norway, Belgium and Sweden put the Vietnamese pangasius fish in the "Don't buy" list, urging local consumers not to buy the fish with an argument that the fish growing method in the Southeast Asian country is causing harm to the environment.

 

After the protest from Vietnam, the WWF sent its inspection team to check the fish production in the country.

 

The inspection team led by Mark Powell, WWF global seafood leader, admitted a mistake had been made while judging the pangasius fish was raised in unhygienic environments.

 

Vietnam is leading exporter of pangasius fish. It expects to earn US$1.55 billion from pangasius exports this year, up from US$1.4 billion last year.

 

The country plans to expand pangasius fish farming to 9,000 hectares in 2011 from 6,300 hectares in 2010 in Mekong Delta, Vietnam's largest supplier of the fish.

Video >

Follow Us

FacebookTwitterLinkedIn