(pangasius-vietnam.com) On 14th May 2012, ASC kicked off its accreditation program by undertake its first audit of pangasius farm in Vietnam. This was the world’s first farm assessment against the ASC Pangasius Standard v11.0 Jan 2012.
The audited farm was Tan Hoan farm in Dong Thap province which is owned by Vinh Hoan Corporation (Vinh Hoan Corp), Vietnam’s largest pangasius processor and exporter. In quarter I/2012, Vinh Hoan Corp reached total US$35 million of fish export.
Accreditation is done by the Institute for Marketecology (IMO); the consultation period will be closed on 18th June 2012.
At the end of April 2012, Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) launched its first ASC Pangasius Standard with the opening of its accreditation process for Pangasius. Having a credible and robust ASC standard for farmed-pangasius marked an important and essential milestone for ASC to make the first farmed-pangasius products of high quality available on the market and help the fish industry limit impacts on the environment and the community.
ASC’s first audit in Vietnam is expected to contribute to raise Vietnam pangasius image in the global market. It also reflects awareness and great efforts of local fish producers and processors to improve fish quality, as well as support of ASC and WWF to Vietnam pangasius industry.