During the talks, the Chilean side provided a presentation containing general information on the quality and safety of fishery products in the Republic of Chile. The National Fisheries and Aquaculture Authority (SERNAPESCA), established in 1978, has been presented with the task of monitoring the safety of fish and seafood.
Chile's fishing industry is a priority. The country is one of the leaders where matters of international exports are concerned. SERNAPESCA supervises and is responsible for a wide range of fishing industries, from small fishing boats to businesses and export. Across the country, there are about 800 employees in 45 offices.
The three main structural units are SERNAPESCA Management of Fisheries, Aquaculture and foreign trade, which are the main pillars for production and exports. The competence of the management of foreign trade depends largely on veterinary and sanitary control of fish products.
The main goal from foreign trade is guarantee of quality and safety of fishery products and satisfaction of the importing countries.
Monitoring of fish is carried out on several fronts. Currently, the most important aspect of health is to control the residual content and marine toxins. The service will then undertake the control of fishing vessels as an industrial scale as well as small fishing boats. The next stage consists of monitoring compliance with health standards for fish-processing plants.
Chile's main products to be exported to the Russian Federation are trout and mussels. Under the memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Rosselkhoznadzor and SERNAPESCA, 102 Chilean fish processing companies have the right to export products to Russia.
Eugene Nepoklonov, Deputy Head of Rosselkhoznadzor and chief veterinary inspector of Russia, noted that Chile has presented materials indicating a high level of organisation of SERNAPESCA but also stressed that unfortunately, not all countries exporting fish products to Russia have such a system in place to ensure the safety of their products. Mr Nepoklonov cited Norway as an example.
