Several supermarket chains in Europe, including Italy, Belgium, Spain, and France banned the sale of pangasius earlier this month, despite the EU insisting there were no health concerns with eating the fish.
European retailer Carrefour maintains that the quality of the fish is "impeccable", but that doubts remain over the environmental credentials of the farms in which they are raised.
The ASC said in a press release Wednesday that it "is sorry to see that a few retailers have decided to halt sales of pangasius." It said that when farmed according to ASC's pangasius standard, buyers and consumers "can have confidence" eating pangasius.
"All ASC certified seafood adhere to strict guidelines to ensure they minimise the negative environmental impacts of farming," the organization said.
"Pangasius farms certified to the ASC standard can only be located in areas approved for aquaculture, and are required to measure various water parameters including nitrogen, phosphorus, and oxygen levels, at regular intervals to ensure they remain within set limits for optimal growing conditions.
"Strict procedures must also be followed to make sure that waste water does not pollute the ecosystem.
"Farms must also adhere to rigorous requirements to minimise disease outbreaks, must not use antibiotics unless truly necessary and then can only do so under the supervision of a veterinarian.
"As with all ASC standards, no antibiotics on the list of the World Health Organizations list of Critically Important Antimicrobials for human health can be used on a farm," it said.
"Because pangasius can be farmed efficiently, with low land use and limited use of feed, and can be produced in a way that respects the environment and communities, we feel there is space for the product in the competitive white fish market," it added.
ASC also noted that certification requires protections of workers' rights by insisting that all farms in the program offer employees contracts in keeping with International Labor Organization regulations.
"The ASC standard is frequently mentioned as the strongest certification on the market. We are dedicated to keeping it that way through consistent review in order to ensure that the standard reflects the best practices in aquaculture," it said.
(Undercurrentnews)
Vietnam raked in over US$200 million from exporting tuna to 86 markets worldwide during the first quarter of the year, representing a rise of 19% against the same period from last year.
Vietnam’s pangasius export to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) reached more than 7 million USD in the first quarter of this year, a rise of 67% against the same period last year. UAE mainly imported frozen fillets from Vietnam.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) According to data from General Department of Vietnam Customs, the UK imported nearly $3 million worth of pangasius from Vietnam in the first half of March 2024. Cumulative pangasius exports to this market reached $12 million as of March 15, 2024, down 3% from the same period last year.
Total export revenue from agro-forestry-fisheries products in the first three months of this year is estimated at 13.53 billion USD, up 21.8% over the same period last year; and this results in a trade surplus of 3.36 billion USD, a rise of 96.5%, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD).
The southernmost locality is developing shrimp farming models that generate large outputs but are environment-friendly.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) An Giang province's aquaculture output is predicted to reach 172.3 thousand tons in the first quarter of 2024, up 6.37% (+10.3 thousand tons) from the same time the previous year.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) According to data from Vietnam Customs, as of March 15, 2024, Vietnam's cephalopod exports reached more than 109 million USD, a slight decrease of 3% compared to the same period in 2023. In the first quarter of this year, Vietnam's cephalopod exports are expected to reach about 136 million USD, down 2% over the same period last year.
(vasep.com.vn) According to statistics from the International Trade Centre (ITC), Portugal is the 6th largest tuna importer in the EU. In 2023, the country's tuna imports from other countries increased by 9% compared to 2022, reaching nearly 241 million USD.
(vasep.com.vn) Vinh Hoan Corporation has just announced supplementary documents for the 2024 Annual General Meeting of Shareholders, scheduled to be held on April 17.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Sao Ta Food Joint Stock Company (FIMEX VN) has just announced that in March 2024, finished shrimp output reached 2,000 tons and finished shrimp consumption reached 1,693 tons, an increase of 74%, and 42% over the same period in 2023, respectively.
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