(vasep.com.vn) Quality certification programs are increasingly popular in seafood export and trade promotion in the international market. Therefore, many Vietnam seafood processors and exporters, especially those in pangasius industry, have been actively investing in fish farming area and processing facilities to meet international quality and food safety requirements.
There are more and more pangasius processing and export companies receiving quality certificates like Best Aquaculture Pratices (BAP), Good Aquaculture Pratices (GlobalGAP), Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC)…In which, ASC is the newest standard applied by Vietnam pangasius industry. This is an accreditation, certification and products-labeling program for responsibly farmed-pangasius. With ASC certificate, Vietnam pangasius industry may strengthen competitiveness and keep its shares in traditional and potential markets where importers and consumers are more interested in quality and product value.
The ASC standards have main 7 principles including: respecting established local and national legal frameworks; strengthening management to avoid negative impacts on other users and the environment; minimizing negative impacts of pangasius farming on water and land resources; minimizing impact of pangasius aquaculture on the local pangasius populations; sustainable feed and feeding practices; minimizing ecosystem and human health impacts; social responsibility. To social responsibility, ASC standard focuses on two requirements (including labors’ age and their health and safety); and responsibility for local communities.
However, many fish producers shared that they were confused even at the first step of ASC standards applying. Some ASC’s information and guidelines are not adequate to conditions in Vietnam. For example, the criteria on pond effluent management in minimizing negative impact on water resources. ASC-applying farms are subjected to the wastewater tax while Vietnam has not set rules on this issue yet. Moreover, they need licence issued by Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (MONRE) if discharging 5,000 cubic meter of waste water per day referring to the government’s Decree No.149/2004 and MONRE’s Circular No.02/2005. This caused waste of time and money.
Vietnam’s guidelines to list and protect local endangered aquatic species are also confusing and incoherent among localities, withdrawing concerns of farm operators. To solve the obstacle, WWF Vietnam has working in cooperation with Can Tho University to conduct a study and build up database on Red List of endangered species and IUCN for Mekong Delta region. Local fish farm’s environmental technicians and experts can base on these data to revise the farming chain to satisfy ASC’s criteria at reasonable cost.
It is also unrealizable to use the Kjeldahl method complying with ISO 17025 to assess testing laboratories in Vietnam because none of laboratories knows about the method. To this current difficult, WWF Vietnam suggested sampling and testing laboratory under ISO 17025, and then auditors would base on testing results to decide to use Kjeldahl or not. Some laboratories in Vietnam begin to register to be granted ISO 17025 certification for Kjeldahl method.