Fish and fishery products are among the most traded food commodities today and this trade is likely to increase to meet the ever increasing-demand for fish and seafood. Yet, one of the most serious difficulties facing exporters is the different quality and safety standards and policies imposed by importers. These disparities concern regulations, standards and procedures, including border controls where seafood products can be rejected, destroyed or detained. In order to promote harmonization and equivalence among seafood-trading nations, such differences need to be reduced and ultimately removed and replaced by international control systems and standards based on scientific techniques such as risk assessment.
This document analyses seafood detentions and rejections in international trade focusing on the four largest fish and seafood importers - Canada, the European Union, Japan and the United States of America. It includes a general introduction, followed by a description of the international regulatory framework and current import regulations for each area. Examples of problem border cases are given, covering a wide range of factors from the type of problem (i.e. microbial, chemical), to species, geography and product category (i.e. fresh, frozen, cured), and an analysis of the relevant data for trends and patterns is made. The document ends with a view towards the future, providing recommendations on what should change in order to improve fish safety and quality controls in international trade and examining the potential role of industry, governments and international bodies in this process.
Ababouch, L.; Gandini, G.; Ryder, J.
Detentions and
rejections in international fish trade.
FAO Fisheries Technical Paper.
No. 473. Rome, FAO. 2005. 110p.
