>> Vietnam asks for clarification of WWF’s assessing methods
>> WWF\'s disapproval of Vietnam\'s major seafood exports stirs strong opposition
>> VASEP to set single tra fish floor price
The Vietnamese General Department of Fisheries strongly opposed the WWF’s assessment criteria of tra fish, saying it was presented inaccurately.
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| Questions and assessment results sent to The General Department of Fisheries |
The department under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) just held a press conference on December 9 after it received the World Wildlife Fund (WWF)’s assessment criteria.
Deputy Head of the department, Pham Anh Tuan, said WWF based on four criteria groups to add tra fish into its consumer “red list”, comprising production system, feed, ecosystem and management process.
According to Vietnam Television, of the 19 questions, 7 had no supporting evidence provided. and the rest were based on two documents published in 2009; namely Aquaculture Magazine No. 296 and a report on environmental impacts of tra fish breeding system by the Wageningen University of the Netherlands.
Tuan noted that the fund’s conclusions about tra pangasius are inaccurate and not convincing.
The WWF Vietnam Office has agreed with the department’s request to move tra fish off of the consumer “red list” while waiting for reassessment results from WWF in cooperation with concerned agencies.
The WWF Vietnam Office affirmed that it did not play a role in the WWF’s appraisal which has caused fierce opposition in Vietnam.
The office also disclosed that the International Global Seafood Leader of WWF, Mark Powell, will come to Vietnam next week to answer questions related to evaluation methods and processes of tra fish. Powell will have a meeting with the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), concerned agencies and the press.
Earlier, WWF put tra fish onto its consumer “red list”, urging buyers to avoid it in many European countries, explaining that tra fish farms pollute the natural environment around them because nutrients, medicines and pesticides are washed into the surrounding rivers and lakes which has led to high risk of disease and infection of other kinds of fish. Therefore, the fund advised European customers to select other products to replace tra pangasius.
