EU yellow card hits Vietnam exports

vasep

A CLAMPDOWN by the European Union has led to a market fall in seafood exports from Vietnam.
The EU has been closely monitoring Vietnamese fishing practices in an attempt to put an end to illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.
Late last year it became so concerned that it showed a yellow card to Vietnam, which appears to be having the desired effect.
The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) has said this is leading to a shortage of EU compliant raw materials, which has badly hit exports.
VASEP said that Vietnam’s tuna exports to the EU last month fell by 10 per cent year-on-year, but in the last four months the overall decline was higher, at 14 per cent.
Squid and octopus sales in April were down by 41 per cent and mollusc exports fell 19 per cent.
Although not covered by the anti-IUU measures because it is farmed fish, sales of pangasius to the EU during the past four months have also dropped due to other restrictions by Brussels.
VASEP general secretary Truong Dinh Hoe said the decline was largely due to a shortage in raw materials for processing.
While demand for Vietnamese seafood exports to the EU was currently quite good, there were fewer exploited seafood products meeting the EU’s strict requirements in traceability.
The EU said it issued the yellow card because the country failed to demonstrate sufficient progress in the fight against IUU fishing.
The EC required the Vietnamese seafood industry to implement nine recommendations over a six- month period between October last year and this April.
A delegation of the European Commission visited Vietnam a few days ago to check on the country’s compliance with measures against IUU fishing, and a decision on whether to withdraw the yellow card is expected in the next few weeks.

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