Recently, the office hall of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) in HCM City was fully attended when the Minister Cao Duc Phat met with enterprises processing aquatic products for export.
Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Vietnam (VASEP) put forward four recommendations: Firstly, change the food safety control approach in accordance with Food Safety Law, international practices and reduce businesses’ unit costs under the principle that production condition control is the main condition for seafood exports. The application of the test sample shipments required will not be treated as a condition of granting certificates (Health certificate) for export.
Under the current approach, enterprises have to face with many difficulties as the average testing cost is 5-15 million/ shipment. Every year, businesses spend VND1-4 billion, most of which is used for regional centres under the Department of Quality Management agro-forestry and fishery (NAFIQAD). Worse still, nearly such an equal amount is used for business control, which increases the production cost. But more importantly, the long waiting period of 7-10 days of each shipment before exporting deteriorates export competitiveness of enterprises compared with other countries and regions.
According to Duong Ngoc Minh, General Director of JSC Hung Vuong Seafood Joint Stock Company, seafood processing industry is in bottleneck. While the administrative procedures increase the cost, credit limit tends to reduce export. Therefore, export target of fishery in 2012 of up to US$6.5 billion compared with US$6.1 billion in 2011 is difficult to be achieved if there are no specific remedies.
Secondly, businesses do not need a certificate of the State when there is no requirement from the importing country nor apply punitive measures to handle violations. That MARD decided to apply export cessation via a notice sent to Canada and Japan was such a severe punishment. Thirdly, the socialization of testing is applied in order to timely serve the export.
According to NAFIQAD, there are currently 15 units to inspect test indicators of aquatic food safety, including 06 laboratories in 06 regional centres, a laboratory of the State management agencies and 8 laboratories for laboratory testing service business. These 15 units have equal rights and obligations under the guideline of socialization of testing service of the Government though in fact these are quite different. Businesses cannot actively send samples to the laboratories indicated. Instead, this must be conducted through the delegation of regional centers. Fourth, there is a need to change the antibiotic control measure and elements of food safety risk in the direction of the source control instead of checking the current shipment.
Speaking at the meeting, Minister Cao Duc Phat expressed the commitment to closely cooperate with the business for the sake of the development of the fisheries sector and the country. Seafood quality and food safety are important. Countries should make use of these loopholes to gain competitive advantage. Control and management measures have been implemented in some pilot provinces as will be expanded in 2012. The control of the pond has always been a long desire. However, in fact, only cat fish can be managed and controlled while the number of shrimp pond is now in the millions. As such, the state has not mobilized enough resources to control these. As such, management system is applied instead.
MARD is in cooperation with 15 multi-national corporations to build public-private partnership in the agricultural products (tea, coffee ...). Under such a direction, the domestic enterprises will closely work with MARD to build up the partnership to boost production, processing and export.
On the control system, Minister Cao Duc Phat agreed on a new approach to ensure the lowest cost of food safety inspection in the region. If this is kindly tackled, it will help reduce control. Special focus should be laid on the weak areas, especially farming and fishing.
As it is very likely to lose 2 markets due to continuous violations of the enterprise, there have been a number of strict regulations though these have caused much negative responses from enterprises. MARD instructs NAFIQAS to follow the recommendations of VASEP in order to create favorable conditions for enterprises to enhance competitiveness and boost exports.
SGGP
Vietnamese
