“With the addition of Pangasius to the BAP suite of fish and shrimp certifications, the BAP program can now serve an even wider public around the world,” GAA Executive Director Wally Stevens said. “We are also nearing completion of the BAP salmon farm standards, which will address another very important species with international standards that protect the environment, animal welfare and worker rights while also addressing food safety and traceability.”
The pangasius standards are the result of work by a technical committee chaired by Philippe Serene, an experienced aquaculture professional and former BAP auditor based in Vietnam. The standards development process included a public review, in which comments were received from both conservationists and aquaculture professionals, as well as multiple meetings with aquaculture representatives in Vietnam, the primary producer of pangasius. The standards were finalized following reviews by the BAP Standards Oversight Committee.
The BAP standards and guidelines for pangasius farms, which share many points with the BAP standards for other fish species, apply only to pond culture, which has emerged as the primary commercial culture system for pangasius. BAP certification requires conservation of biodiversity, soil and water management, and drug and chemical management.
Regular monitoring of water quality and effluents is also required. The high density typical of pangasius pond culture led to BAP requirements for sedimentation ponds to handle effluent and standards that protect the safety of divers who clear sludge from pond bottoms during production.
Over 1.3 billion pounds of shrimp, tilapia and catfish are processed to the BAP standards annually, said the GAA.