(IntraFish) Over 300 seafood products from Indonesia have been internationally certified in compliance with Codex Alimentarius, the highest international food standard, assuring products are safe for human consumption, according to The Jakarta Post.
This proved the country’s commitment, as a major fish exporter, to improve the quality of its fishery products so they could be more widely accepted and safely consumed, said Gellwynn Jusuf, secretary general of the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry.
The ministry recorded exports of fishery products last year as amounting to $3.5 billion (€2.7 billion), an increase of 23 percent from $2.8 billion (€2.2 billion) in 2010.
The largest export markets for the country are the United States, valued at $1.13 billion (€876 million), followed by Japan at $806 million (€624.8 million) and the EU at $460 million (€356.6 million).
“During the first half of this year, exports reached $1.9 billion (€1.5 billion), an increase of 17.92 percent compared to the same period last year. This shows that our products have higher competitiveness,” Gellwyn said, adding that the ministry was targeting $4.2 billion (€3.3 billion) in exports this year.