TODAY TONIGHT VS SEAFOOD IMPORTERS
December 26th 2007 06:19
Chairman of the SIAA, Mr Harry Peters AM, said footage of fish growing in disgusting conditions in urban tributaries, were unrelated to the modern fish farms and processing factories exporting to Australia.
CL Fish Company, in the My Qui Industrial Zone of Long Xuyen City, specializes in producing Basa Pangasius (Pangasius Bocourti) and Tra Pangasius (Pangasius Hypophthalmus), fish destined mainly for export.
President/Director of the CL-Fish Company, Mr. Tran Van Nhan, said the company has programs to control the growth of Basa during all stages, from the fingerlings, to the floating pens to the processing factories.
‘Before the fish hit the processing line of our factory every fish must pass the pre-testing steps both at the farms and in the plant laboratory,’ he said.
‘The Basa & Tra Pangasius fish are delivered live to the processing plant.’
‘Then they are cleaned and filleted under professional and model processing systems and snap frozen using state of the art European freezing equipment.’
Mr Peters said that almost half a million tonnes of Basa are sold world-wide every year and if there was any real risk that this seafood wasn’t 100% safe, that trade would not exist.
‘It was clear that, whilst the Today Tonight reporter did his best to beat up a horror story using footage of urban areas and drains, the factual evidence (is) that there are no high bacteria levels or contaminants in export standard farmed fish from the Mekong, as tested by Australian authorities,’ he said.
‘This is exactly what the Australian Quarantine & Inspection Service, which tests all imported seafood before it is approved for sale here, tried to tell Channel 7’s reporter,’ he said.
‘Australia is dependant on imports because demand had exceeded our own sustainable production by about double.’
‘Basa, which is produced by sustainable aquaculture, is an ideal fish for Australians because it doesn’t deplete the world’s fisheries resources, it has a flavour and texture preferred by most Australians, and it has no bones.’
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