HCM City (VNA) – The Vietnamese government and fishery sector have always strived to meet international regulations on food hygiene and safety, especially those of the European Union (EU)’s, said Luong Le Phuong, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development.
With the support of the European Union and a solid sense of determination, Vietnamese fisheries have lifted themselves out of a dilapidated industry and have gone on to become an important part of the country’s economy, Phuong said at the EU fishery and aquaculture standards workshop.
The government’s aim to establish the fishery sector as an equal player in the international seafood market came in 1994 when it set up the National Fisheries Inspection and Quality Assurance Centre (NAFIQACEN), now the National Fishery Quality Assurance and Veterinary Directorate (NAFIQAVED).
With the centre’s advocacy in forming a legislation system to control fishery quality, safety and assistance in December 1999, the European Commission listed Viet Nam among those countries eligible to export fish in this challenging market.
“Following the EU, other international markets with strict requirements on food safety also approved of Viet Nam,” Phuong told 100 Vietnamese and foreign participants from fishery processing establishments attending the EU workshop.
As of last year, the fishery sector’s total production was 3.7 million tonnes – three times as high as the 1993 figure. Last year’s export turnover was 3.3 billion USD. Viet Nam’s 245 qualified fishery exporting companies now export to over 130 markets.
Eric Poudelet, Directorate General for Health and Consumer Protection at the European Commission, said the EU is the world’s largest food importer, with 50 percent being fishery products. Viet Nam, Thailand and China are among the top seven EU exporters.
In January of last year, the EU started applying new regulations on fishery and aquaculture products.
“It is important that you, the authorities of exporting countries, ensure these exports reach the highest possible standards in terms of safety,” Poudelet told the participants, many of whom had come from other countries in the region.
To help seafood exporting companies and authorities in exporting countries comply with these new sets of standards, the EU decided to hold 10 regional training workshops on its fishery and aquaculture standards.
Today and tomorrow, participants will visit aquaculture farms and processing factories in the Mekong Delta provinces of Can Tho and Soc Trang for hands-on training experiences.
Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Luong Le Phuong presented Poudelet with his ministry’s insignia and a certificate of merit for his contribution to Viet Nam’s fishery and aquaculture sector over the last ten years.-Enditem
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