Circular No. 09/2010/TT-BNNPTNT Issuing Requirements to Ensure Quality and Food Safety in Processing Exported Catfish and Basa Products

CIRCULAR

Issuing requirements to ensure quality and food safety in processing pangasius and basa products for export

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Pursuant to Decree 01/2008/NĐ-CP dated January 3, 2008 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development; Pursuant to Decree 75/2009/NĐ-CP dated September 10, 2009 of the Government amending Article 3 of Decree 01/2008/NĐ-CP dated January 3, 2008 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;

Pursuant to the Product Quality Law dated November 21, 2007; Decree 132/2008/NĐ-CP dated December 31, 2008 of the Government detailing the implementation of certain provisions of the Product Quality Law;

Pursuant to the Food Safety Ordinance dated July 26, 2003; Decree No. 163/2004/NĐ-CP dated September 7, 2004 of the Government detailing the implementation of certain provisions of the Food Safety Ordinance;

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development hereby issues requirements to ensure quality and food safety in processing pangasius and basa products for export as follows:

Article 1. Scope of application

1. Purpose of regulation: This Circular stipulates requirements to ensure quality and food safety in processing pangasius and basa products for export.

第二条 组织和实施奖励工作的支出水平，如政府第152/2025/NĐ-CP号决定关于分级授权和奖励领域的分权规定

a. Processing facilities producing pangasius and basa products for export;

b. Export shipments of pangasius and basa from Vietnam to various markets.

Article 2. Processing facilities exporting pangasius and basa products must meet the following requirements

1. Having been inspected and recognized as meeting the conditions for ensuring food safety in aquaculture production and business operations according to the regulations of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

2. Raw materials of pangasius and basa used for processing export products.

a. Originating from breeding sites within permitted harvesting areas as stipulated in the Regulation issued together with Decision No. 130/2008/QĐ-BNN dated December 31, 2008 of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development on the control of harmful substance residues in animals and animal aquatic products.

b. Being sampled and tested by the processing facility with results meeting the requirements for food safety standards as specified in the facility's Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) program.

c. Being visually inspected by the processing facility upon receipt of raw materials (live, healthy fish without signs of disease or parasites) and found to meet quality requirements.

3. Requirements during processing and export of products:

a. The ratio of ice weight to the net weight of frozen fillet pangasius and basa export products must comply with the regulations of the importing country's authorities but shall not exceed 20%.

b. Only permitted chemical additives and processing aids listed in the import market's or current Vietnamese regulations may be used. Residues of chemical additives and processing aids in the product must not exceed the maximum allowable limits.

c. Export shipments of pangasius and basa products must be inspected and certified for quality and food safety by the Directorate of Quality Assurance of Forestry, Agriculture, and Aquatic Products according to the regulations of the importing country or Vietnamese regulations before export.

Article 3. Implementation Organization

The Directorate of Quality Assurance of Forestry, Agriculture, and Aquatic Products shall be responsible for:

1. Inspecting and supervising the implementation of the provisions set forth in Clause 1, Clause 2; Point a, b Clause 3 Article 2 of this Circular for processing facilities during the processing of pangasius and basa export products.

2. Conducting inspections and certifying quality and food safety for all export shipments of pangasius and basa from Vietnam to global markets.

3. Cooperating with the General Department of Customs to control pangasius and basa export shipments according to this Circular.

Article 4. Effective date

1\. This Circular takes effect forty-five days from the date of issuance.

Deputy Director of the Office, Director of the Directorate of Quality Assurance of Forestry, Agriculture, and Aquatic Products, Heads of units under the Ministry, and processing facilities producing pangasius and basa for export are responsible for implementing this Circular.

During implementation, if there are any difficulties, agencies, organizations, and individuals should promptly report them to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for study and amendment.