VASAP has warned that regulations on EU’s new IUU (illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing) law would mar the business of Vietnamese seafood companies when they try to export products. It is told that under the IUU law, all seafood export consignments to the EU must clearly show the origin of the products, including the sea area where the fish are caught and the names of the fishing boats, or they will be refused entry.
It is reporte din local media that the new regulation will be valid as of January 1, 2010. Meanwhile, a lot of Vietnamese businesses are unprepared. VASEP added that most processing and export companies are collecting fish materials from small merchants at fishing ports. Small merchants, meanwhile, collect fish from tens or even hundreds fishing boats, making it impossible to remember all the names of the ships. Some offshore ships even sell fish right on the sea to service ships.
Vietnam’s fishing industry remains very small and the State has not set up any strict regulations. Therefore, VASEP has cautioned that it will not be easy to follow the EU’s IUU. Yueh Chyang Canned Food Company said that it is worried about the new regulation, because the EU consumes 50 percent of its exports. Currently, the company collects fish from small merchants who in turn gather fish from small ships.
The businesses predicted that they will face many difficulties in IUU application, because up to 60-70 percent of exporters to the EU are using materials caught in the wild. Truong Thi Hoa, Deputy Head of the Business Division of Vinh Hoan Company, observed that she does not think that the IUU will hinder the company’s exports, though she still does not know the IUU well.
