The decision of the European Commission (EC) to extend its yellow card issued for Vietnam’s seafood until January next year will make life more difficult for local seafood exporters, local officials said.

The European Commission (EC) will reconsider the yellow card issued for Vietnam’s seafood in January next year 

Truong Dinh Hoe, general secretary of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), noted that the seafood volume sent to the European Union (EU) will drop as both exporters and importers will suffer from more time-consuming customs clearance procedures, resulting in higher costs.

VASEP deputy general secretary Nguyen Hoai Nam pointed out that the EC will return to Vietnam next year to check whether the country has clamped down on illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.

Meanwhile, the country’s management of fishing and origin traceability remains inadequate. Vietnam currently has nearly 110,000 fishing boats, with 33,000 of them specializing in offshore fishing. However, only some 3,000 boats have satellite-positioning devices installed.

Although the EC’s recommendations have been included in the 2017 fisheries law, decrees and guiding documents, law enforcement needs to be strengthened at the local level.

Answering a question by the Daily on the possibility of a red card for Vietnam’s seafood, which would entail a complete ban on Vietnamese seafood exports, if the country fails to fix the situation as requested by the EC, Hoe said the EC is not likely to issue a red card as the local seafood sector is striving to cope with its shortcomings and comply with the EC’s recommendations.

However, it is not easy to resolve the existing problems over the short term. Thailand, for example, has had a yellow card for several years, Hoe added.

Nguyen Thi Trang Nhung, deputy director of the Department of Science, Technology and International Cooperation under the Directorate of Fisheries of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, told the Daily that the department will hold a press conference on the problem on July 3.

The EC on October 23, 2017 announced a yellow card for Vietnam’s seafood exports to the EU market.

The nine recommendations given to Vietnam to act on within the six-month period from October 23 last year to April 23, include ensuring the effective adoption of revised laws; enhancing the effective execution of international regulations and management measures; increasing the traceability of seafood products; preventing sales of products from illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing; and promoting cooperation with other countries.

SGT