The Russian Federal Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance Services (VPSS) has officially announced that it has detained tra fish imports from four Vietnamese companies for examination purposes only, stated by Vice Head of National Fisheries Quality and Veterinary Directorate (Nafiqaved) Tran Bich Nga.

According to Ms Nga, VPSS had detained the imports as the consignments of tra fish were suspected of being infected with bacteria, thus violating Russian requirements on food hygiene.

Mrs Nga stressed that this examination was normal, and that all imported consignments would be examined before they were distributed in Russia. While waiting for the final conclusion on the imports quality, the four Vietnamese companies would halt exports of tra fish to Russia.

Under the new regulations, as of the fourth quarter of 2006, all seafood items to be exported to Russia must go through the inspection of VPSS. Vietnamese companies must have certificates of food hygiene granted by VPSS to be eligible to export seafood to Russia
 
In March, VPSS officials came to Vietnam to examine fishing ports, fish markets, aquaculture and seafood processing establishments, to find out if Vietnamese aquaculture and seafood processing establishments were following their requirements on food hygiene. VPSS has announced that most of the 27 processing establishments it inspected meet VPSS requirements
 
The other Vietnamese companies which have been licenced to export seafood to Russia can continue to export; there is no need to wait for new regulations.
 
However, Ms Nga said that the Ministry of Fisheries and Nafiqaved were proposing the application of a probability inspection scheme as applied by other countries in the world. Under the scheme, quarantine agencies will inspect import consignments at random. If agencies find prohibited substances or anti-biotic residues at high concentration in seafood, they will order the destruction of the imports and refuse to import products from the violating companies.