By BERNAMA,
HANOI : The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) is tightening its control over the quality and safety of Vietnam ‘s exported seafood products, with the aim of increasing exports to Russia, Vietnam News Agency (VNA) reported.
In addition, the ministry will give priority to seafood processors that have won contracts with Russian partners, as long as their products meet all of the necessary requirements and are accepted by the Russian Federal Service for Veterinary and Physio-sanitary Surveillance (VPSS).
These steps have been taken to address the fact that the VPSS placed a ban on the import of Vietnamese seafood in December 2008.
The Nam Viet Seafood Export Joint Stock Company (Navico), one of Vietnam’s leading seafood exporters to the Russian market, vowed to focus on the quality of its products by only purchasing raw materials from qualified suppliers.
Meanwhile, the Kien Giang Seafood Joint Stock Company (Kisimex) announced that it has invested in an upgrade of its production line to increase both its output and product quality.
During 2008, Vietnam made a breakthrough in exporting seafood to Russia , enjoying a surge of 82.9 percent in export value.
Russia became the third biggest importer of Vietnamese seafood, following the EU and Japan, and holds the potential for further increases during 2009.