Putting tra fish in the red book is a lack of scientific basis

Before the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has just officially put pangasius on the red list in the seafood consumption guide in 2010-2011, on December 3, Deputy Director General of the Directorate of Fisheries -The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development Pham Anh Tuan affirmed that this is a lack of scientific basis.

Processing export catfish.

According to Tuan, this recommendation carries bad intentions, affecting Vietnam's pangasius production industry as well as consumers in the international market.

According to the Deputy Director General, this is incomplete information, including the standard, the WWF facility applied is not true only based on one-way information.

He said that WWF's decision was not based on any criteria; not yet recognized the reality. This will also affect trade relations between countries.

The Deputy Director also noted, the above information is given in the Fisheries Consumption Guide 2010-2011 only by WWF in some countries such as Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, Norway and Denmark. rather than WWF's world.

Right in the beginning of next week, the Directorate of Fisheries will have a press conference to discuss, question and clarify with WWF representatives in Vietnam on this issue.

Affirming the above problem, Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Processors (VASEP) also said that WWF's handbook put pangasius on the red list with the main reason being the environment, food and chemicals. and veterinary drugs in catfish farming " have problems ," however, no concrete evidence has been given to prove it.

In recent years, pangasius is one of the aquatic species always chosen by European consumers in family meals due to its quality and reasonable price. The unions and organizations exploiting white meat fish in Europe compete again, so they have opened many smear campaigns on pangasius environment but actually since 2004, Vietnamese pangasius has been raised in ponds to meet standards of SQF 1000 CM management system owned and operated by the American Food Marketing Association (FMI).

This standard meets strict food safety criteria both in the United States and in many other countries, as well as meeting the rigorous demands of consumers in the markets.

Vietnamese pangasius processing and exporting enterprises always update information on new quality management systems to improve product quality to better meet the requirements of continuous international standards. is set and consumer demand for Vietnamese pangasius products.

Currently, most Vietnamese pangasius processing and exporting enterprises have built systems from seed to export products to ensure product quality 'from farm to table.'

Some Vietnamese pangasius factories and farming areas have been granted Gobal GAP certificates. Vietnamese pangasius products have been exported to over 120 countries and territories around the world, meeting all strict standards of EU, Australia, USA and Japan.

Pangasius export volume to markets always grows steadily every year. This is a testament to the fact that Vietnamese pangasius products are not only popular because of their delicious taste, high nutritional value but also meet the requirements of food hygiene and safety.

As soon as the incident occurred, Vasep had a letter immediately to the head of the WFF Mark Powell to protest and Vasep invited WFF representatives to Vietnam to visit the fish farms as well as the whole processing process, preserving and exporting pangasius. Mr. Mark Powell agreed and in May 2011 will go to Vietnam.