Up to 30 shrimp farming cooperatives in the Mekong Delta provinces of Soc Trang, Bac Lieu, Ca Mau have achieved the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) certification on responsible aquaculture.
The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in Vietnam and the Nordic Seafood Group – a Norwegian seafood importer and Soc Trang Seafood JSC have jointly organised training courses to help the cooperatives fulfill the ASC requirements.
In order to get the ASC certification, farmers will be required to make basic changes in their practice, from managing the environmental quality, shrimp fry, shrimp food to origin verification.
Hoa Nghia Cooperative in the Mekong Delta province of Soc Trang is the first one in the province receiving the ASC certification for its 60 hectares of shrimp cultivation.
Director of the cooperative Ngo Thanh Tuan said the recognition will help the cooperative ship its shrimp to the big markets in the world, such as nations in Europe and the Americas.
According to Tuan, the cooperative can produce 600 tonnes of shrimp meeting the ASC standard per year.
Director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development Luong Minh Quyet said, the recognition is a good signal for the province’s agricultural sector as well as local farmers.
The ASC has so far granted quality certifications to around 3,000 labels and over 500,000 tonnes of products in the world market.
Source: VNA