Traditionally, all seafood imports into the United States must be inspected by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), while imports of foodstuffs of all other types are handled by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).
That's still how it works, with one small exception: Any catfish coming into the United States will have to be inspected by the USDA. This little wrinkle came back in 2008, slipped almost as an afterthought into the update that year to the Farm Bill, which sets these regulations.
Recently, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) declared the program a waste of money. Various fiscal conservative government watchdog groups and a growing number of senators and U.S. Representatives from both sides of the political aisle have noted that the program has spent the USD 20 million just to equip itself to do the inspections, let alone actually inspect any fish.
The vast majority want this program cut, except for domestic catfish producers and Sen. Thad Cochran (pictured), R-Miss. He's a ranking member of the Senate Agricultural Committee which, in cooperation with the House Agricultural Committee, was responsible for preparing the bill for a vote on the floor.
Cochran has declined several requests by SeafoodSource to provide a comment of any kind on the issue. His office has pointed us to statements he has made in the past on the subject, which indicate the senator trusts the USDA more than the FDA to inspect catfish coming in from other countries.
Whether there is any real health risk connected to catfish, as opposed to the rest of the seafood exported to America (more than 90 percent of total seafood consumed here, by the way), is not clear, but anyone who thinks this is the senator's only motivation must consider some other facts.
Most importantly, the rule sets up a lot more red tape for countries such as Vietnam who want to export pangasius, a type of catfish, to the United States, whether the USDA ever gets around to inspecting it or not. That spells very good news for the USD 1 billion domestic catfish industry, which is a strong constituency in Sen. Cochran's home state.
Clearly, the Mississippi catfish industry is driving the bus on this one. Apparently, said industry cares little about foreign catfish exporters. It also doesn't seem to care about the American companies that import and distribute Vietnamese catfish, and the impact this trade barrier — for what else can we call it — has on their future.
This is pork-barrel politics at its worst, and if you're a part of the seafood industry — whether you're based in Mississippi or not — and you haven't told the senator how ridiculous you think this program is, now is the time. This catfish program has survived the ax twice, and if it really does have nine lives, we could be stuck with this waste for quite a while.
(vasep.com.vn) On November 11, 2026, in Can Tho, the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) will organize the Vietnam Seafood Summit 2026 (VSS 2026) under the theme “Seafood Market Outlook 2027–2029: Opportunities and Headroom for Double-Digit Export Growth.”
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Business leader Do Ngoc Tai, General Director of Tai Kim Anh Seafood Processing Joint Stock Company, was honored by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) with the title “Outstanding Vietnamese Entrepreneur – Thanh Giong Cup 2026” at a ceremony celebrating Vietnam Entrepreneurs’ Day (October 13). The event took place on the evening of October 11, 2026, at the National Convention Center in Hanoi.
(vasep.com.vn) The global tilapia market is becoming increasingly segmented, not only among producing countries but also by product type and destination market. Supply is divided into groups with distinct competitive advantages: large volumes of whole fish and frozen fillets from Asia, high-value fresh fillets from Latin America, and substantial domestic consumption in several major producing countries.
(vasep.com.vn) Vietnam’s tuna exports to the UK grew in the first eight months of 2026, despite signs of slowing import demand in the market. However, sharp fluctuations in orders, competition from major suppliers, and new traceability requirements are creating challenges for Vietnamese exporters.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Vietnam is stepping up efforts to combat illegal fishing, protect marine ecosystems, expand digital monitoring, and develop science-based management to ensure the sea can support communities and the economy for generations to come.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) The EU remains a critical market for Vietnamese shrimp; however, purchasing demand and import patterns are undergoing notable changes. According to Vietnam Customs data, as of September 15, 2026, Vietnam’s shrimp exports to the EU reached nearly $374 million, down 5% year-over-year and accounting for 10.7% of the country’s total shrimp export value. Meanwhile, the EU’s stotal shrimp imports through July 2026 contracted by 7% in volume, exhibiting divergent trends across Southern Europe, Northwestern Europe and Eastern Europe. These dynamics necessitate that Vietnamese enterprises closely monitor individualized market demand, rather than approaching the EU as a monolithic consumer block.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) In the first eight months of 2026, Vietnam’s exports of surimi and fish cakes remained relatively stable year-over-year compared to 2025. Following a contraction in the initial months, export performance demonstrated improvement from June onward, peaking in August. However, the recovery has been uneven, characterized by divergent trends across major markets: robust growth was recorded in China, Japan, Malaysia, the United States, and Taiwan, whereas export volumes to South Korea, Indonesia, and select European markets contracted.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Pangasius remains one of Dong Thap’s key aquaculture species, with the province focusing on developing an integrated value chain covering seed production, commercial farming, deep processing and by-product utilization. The province is promoting high-tech, circular pangasius farming models featuring reduced water exchange and enhanced biosecurity, aiming to improve production efficiency and strengthen control over raw material quality.
(vasep.com.vn) Vietnam’s seafood exports in September 2026 are estimated at US$1.135 billion, up 11.9% year-on-year, bringing total exports in the first nine months of the year to US$9.103 billion, up 11.4%. Behind this double-digit growth, however, increasingly divergent market trends are emerging: China–Hong Kong and ASEAN posted strong growth, while the U.S., EU and Japan all recorded declines in September.
(vasep.com.vn) In the first eight months of 2026, Brazil became the largest market for Vietnamese tilapia, with export value reaching US$44 million, up 22,142% year-on-year and accounting for 49% of Vietnam’s total tilapia exports. In August alone, exports to Brazil reached US$4 million. However, behind this remarkable growth is a market that is imposing increasingly stringent requirements on imported supplies.
VASEP - HIỆP HỘI CHẾ BIẾN VÀ XUẤT KHẨU THỦY SẢN VIỆT NAM
Chịu trách nhiệm: Ông Nguyễn Hoài Nam - Phó Tổng thư ký Hiệp hội
Đơn vị vận hành trang tin điện tử: Trung tâm VASEP.PRO
Trưởng Ban Biên tập: Bà Phùng Thị Kim Thu
Giấy phép hoạt động Trang thông tin điện tử tổng hợp số 138/GP-TTĐT, ngày 01/10/2013 của Bộ Thông tin và Truyền thông
Tel: (+84 24) 3.7715055 – (ext.203); email: kimthu@vasep.com.vn
Trụ sở: Số 7 đường Nguyễn Quý Cảnh, Phường An Phú, Quận 2, Tp.Hồ Chí Minh
Tel: (+84) 28.628.10430 - Fax: (+84) 28.628.10437 - Email: vasephcm@vasep.com.vn
VPĐD: số 10, Nguyễn Công Hoan, Ngọc Khánh, Ba Đình, Hà Nội
Tel: (+84 24) 3.7715055 - Fax: (+84 24) 37715084 - Email: vasephn@vasep.com.vn