Tuna canners urge BFAR to secure EU certification

The local tuna canning industry wants the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) to hasten its acquisition of a European Union (EU) certification to ensure continued access to its biggest market.

In the last year, BFAR, an attached agency of the Department of Agriculture (DA) has been implementing measures required by the EU prior to the issuance of a certification that would in effect accredit Philippine tuna exports to EU member countries.

"BFAR’s competence as an inspecting agency is critical to our exports to the EU. BFAR should be able to convince the EU to issue that certification, otherwise we could lose a substantial volume of the country’s tuna exports," an industry official said.

EU health and quarantine authorities were supposed to arrive in the country last November to look at improvements made by local fish processing plants and canneries, particularly in addressing reported inadequacies concerning Hazard Analysis on Critical Control Point (HACCP) standards.

Earlier, BFAR said it was tightening the noose on local fish and seafood exporters to ensure they comply with the more rigid quality and safety standards of the EU.

BFAR signed an agreement with Dole Philippines Inc. that will allow seafood exporters to use the company’s chemical and microbiology laboratories in Polomolok, South Cotabato.

Malcolm Sarmiento, BFAR director said the accreditation of DOLE’s laboratory facilities by the agency is one of several measures being implemented to meet EU’s conditions that products shipped to their member countries are certified as safe, thus, assuring exporters of continued market access to the region.

Under the agreement, exporters using the world-class Dole facilities will be paying specific fees. The Dole laboratories are recognized by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources for water, wastewater, sediments and biota analyses, soil testing and plant tissue analysis, safety and quality of food and industrial products.

At the same time, this arrangement also eases the pressure on the cash-challenged BFAR to put up its own facilities.

"We are confident that the processing plants will be able to fully comply with the EU standards. To ensure that a ban is not implemented, we already delisted several non-complying exporters and it would be difficult for them to continue exporting without our accreditation," said Sarmiento.

Previously, the National Agricultural and Fishery Council (NAFC), an attached agency of the Department of Agriculture (DA) urged for the creation of a single protocol for the creation of fish and fishery standards.

NAFC said the national standards should ensure consumer protection and facilitate domestic and export trade.

BFAR is already carrying out an action plan to address concerns aired by the EU such as the inadequate sanitary conditions of facilities as well as histamine residue levels of products exported to the region.

The plan intended to raise BFAR’s capability to monitor and supervise exporting firms, particularly their fish inspection and quality control sections.

Sarmiento pointed out the country was given a reprieve to continue exporting fishery and aquaculture products on condition that histamine in scombroid and banned antibiotics in aquaculture products are strictly observed.

Scombroids include tuna and tuna like species, while the banned antibiotics are nitrofurans and chloramphenicol.

The action plan ensures the country’s top fish and seafood exports like canned tuna, prawns and seaweeds are not interrupted by another ban.

The EU wants to continue the restrictions on exports of frozen tuna treated with filtered smoke, a continuing inspection of fish ports and landing sites, internal and external calibration of the plants‚ processing and canning equipment, and inspection of accredited freezer vessels.

The EU restriction last year also resulted in the reduction of accredited export firms to 30 from 97.