VietNamNet Bridge – A set of measurable, performance-based standards for tra, basa catfish production should be drawn up as soon as possible to meet global customers’ quality needs, a senior environmental official told a conference that opened in Can Tho on Wednesday.

Workers prepare tra catfish for export at the A Chau Co Ltd in the central province of Quang Nam.

“I would like to hear any idea to get the best standards that can help transform the aquaculture industry.”

The World Wildlife Fund’s two-day annual Aquaculture Dialogues, involving farmers, processors, exporters, retailers, input suppliers, government officials, academics, and NGO workers, aims to speed up the process of compiling such standards.

On its agenda are seven issues related to catfish production: legal issues, land/water use, social issues, genetics/biodiversity, water pollution, feed management, health, and chemicals.

The WWF standards aim to minimize the primary environmental and social issues associated with farming pangasius.

After this meeting, the first draft of the standards will be finalized and posted online for public comment. The final provisions will be released by the middle of next year.

The biggest players, accounting for around 20 per cent of producers, will have to adopt these standards first, with certification to be granted by an independent audit body. David Graham of the process facilitation group said, “By applying these standards, we hope to sustain a profitable, environmentally responsible industry and enhance consumers’ confidence.”

This will be the third meeting of the dialogue since it was initiated in September 2007.

Viet Nam, believed to produce 90 per cent of catfish products in the world, sells them to more than 80 countries, mainly in the form of white filets. In 1997 its exports had been a mere $20 million. It has since climbed to more than $1.2 billion. The European Union is the largest market with a share of almost 50 percent.

There are several WWF-initiated dialogues underway globally. Standards also are being developed for salmon, trout, tilapia, seriola (kampachi, hamachi or hiramasa), cobia, shrimp, abalone, and four types of bivalve shellfish.

(Source: Viet Nam News)