A recent visit by Japanese officials on a fact-finding mission to Vietnam found the country’s seafood-sanitation standards up to code, allowing for the continued export of products to the Japanese market.
The delegation, from Japan’s Pharmaceutical and Food Safety Bureau (PFSB), focused on five seafood-processing plants and the fishing port of Phan Thet in the central Vietnam province of Binh Thuan.
One important aspect of the inspection was to look at the management and distribution of chemicals and veterinary medicines, as well as ensuring controls were in place to prevent forbidden substances from turning up in seafood products exported to Japan.
At its meeting with the Vietnam National Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries and Quality Administrative Directorate (NAFIQAD), the PFSB recommended that the Vietnamese organization look at its ability to respond to inspections to avoid duplication of effort. PFSB also suggested that NAFIQAD cooperate with the relevant ministerial departments in identifying fish farms that require upgrading, along with monitoring the sale and distribution of chemicals and veterinary medicines.
Fewer seafood products exported to Japan have tested positive for forbidden substances since Vietnam implemented measures in 2006 to crack down on their use.
In January, Vietnamese seafood exports to Japan stood at 8,209 metric tons valued at USD 50 million (EUR 37.5 million).
