Source: VietnamNet Bridge World News 14/12/2006 19:04:33
Ha Yen
The Ministry of Trade of Vietnam has received a formal notice from the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare saying that Japan had once again discovered antibiotic residues in cuttlefish and shrimp exports from Vietnam.
The five entities Japan identifies in the missive are Hoang Cam (109A Ho Ngoc Lam, Binh Tan District, Hanoi), Hai Thuan (block 13-14 Phan Thiet fishing port, Binh Thuan Province), Workshop NO 16 under the Quy Nhon Seafood Processing Company (No 4 Phan Chu Trinh, Quy Nhon City in Binh Dinh Province), Nam Mai (18/10 Tran Quang Dieu, district 3, HCM City) and Minh Hieu (Highway 1A, Bac Lieu Province).
Though Vietnam has implemented strict measures to make sure that seafood products exported to Japan do not contain antibiotic residues, there has been no improvement in the quality of exported products. The Ministry of Trade has warned that if seafood companies do not stop exporting bad quality products, it is likely that Japan will ban shrimp and cuttlefish imports from Vietnam. If that were the case, Vietnam would lose a very important market.
Most recently, the Ministry of Fisheries has asked seafood companies that export to Japan to register with Nafiqaved (the National Fisheries Quality Assurance and Veterinary Directorate (NAFIQAVED).
As for the 11 seafood companies which have been discovered as having exported consignments of products with antibiotic residues, authorities will examine 100% of their exports to Japan.
Nafiqaved has also announced that it will hold training courses on chemical control for shrimp hatchery ponds, establishments specialising in collecting shrimp and workers at processing workshops. Nafiqaved will also reassert control over all phases of seafood production, from farming to preserving and processing.
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