(VOVworld) – The US Senate approved the Farm Bill on February 7 with regulations to protect its agriculture. It will definitely reduce Vietnam’s export of tra fish to the US and may eliminate a number of small-scale tra fish raising ponds in the Mekong river delta.
Under the just-adopted US Farm Bill, tra fish will be regulated by new technical barriers imposed by the US Department of Agriculture in the next two months. The function of monitoring catfish, including Vietnam’s basa and tra fish, which used to be under the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), has been transferred to the Department of Agriculture. In addition to checking food safety and hygiene, the US will monitor tra fish raising areas in Vietnam. It is predicted that the US Department of Agriculture will require Vietnam to upgrade tra fish ponds to the standard being applied by US catfish raisers.
The US Farm Bill means increasing farm protection
The US Department of Agriculture will require catfish exports to the US to meet the same standards as local products for product quality, raising methods, packing, and shipping. It sets difficult and costly barriers for catfish raisers in other countries, including Vietnam, who must build and upgrade their production lines to meet US standards. Many foreign enterprises cannot comply with the requirement of origin investigation to confirm that the raising process has met US standards. Such investigations have little to do with product quality, safety, or hygiene, which used to be the reasons for the US to obstruct catfish imports. US catfish raisers are the biggest beneficiaries of the Farm Bill.
Vietnam, which provides nearly 80% of the catfish imported by the US, is one of the countries most affected by the Farm Bill. Truong Dinh Hoe, Deputy Secretary General of the Vietnamese Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers, said: “Tra fish exports are facing many difficulties, including a reduction of major markets and anti-dumping issues in the US. In addition, the supply and price of tra breeding fish in Vietnam has been unstable.”
Challenges for Vietnam’s fishery sector
Vietnamese tra raising ponds and processing companies will have to improve and apply strict regulations under the US standards if they want to export products to the US. The US Department of Agriculture will introduce specific conditions for implementing the Farm Bill within 60 days from February 7.
It is obvious that US production, processing, and packing standards will not be easy to meet for Vietnamese farmers who raise tra fish.
Vietnam’s fishery processing for export anticipated the Bill, but it will face certain difficulties at the beginning and fishery exports to the US will slow. Vietnam’s fishery sector has to reform its production to catch up with the world market. Nguyen Huu Dung, Vice Chairman of the Vietnamese Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers, said: “Information publication is an objective requirement. Enterprises have to reform their activities, make clear labels and code them with information on food safety. Enterprises must update information so we can avoid scandals and derogatory remarks about Vietnamese tra fish.”
Vietnam’s tra exports earned 1.8 billion USD last year. The US market bought 27% of Vietnam’s fishery exports and 33% of its tra fish exports. Vietnam has encouraged its farmers and enterprises to apply VietGAP, GlobalGAP, and ASC standards in production. With appropriate changes in management, export, and certification, Vietnamese tra fish can and will meet the US export criteria. Building and implementing plans to meet the US Farm Bill regulations is a task Vietnamese enterprises must perform to maintain Vietnam’s position as top tra exporter to the US.