Aquaculture for all

Malaysia Calls for Delay on EU Frozen Fish Ban

MALAYSIA - Malaysia's frozen seafood industry has called on the European Union to delay a threatened ban on its multi-billion-dollar exports.

The EU is expected to bring in the ban on 18 June because the products do not meet European health standards.

Ch'ng Chin Hooi, chairman of the Malaysian Frozen Foods Processors Association has expressed deep concern over the loss of one of the Malaysian industry's major export destinations, according to the official EU Business website.

The ban comes after EU food and veterinary officials visited Malaysia in April 2007. They found that six out of nine local seafood companies exporting to Europe did not meet EU health standards.

Mr Ch'ng said Malaysian authorities should come down hard on industry players, who fail to adhere to food safety regulations.

He added that Malaysian food operators have supplied frozen seafood to European markets for the last 30 years and had never faced a ban.

Ch'ng said that most of his association's 20 food processing members have adopted EU standards and that they were planning to get European importers to help lobby against the ban.

View the EU Business story by clicking here.
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