The Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta province of Dong Thap has issued identification numbers to ponds that breed tra fish under a government decree on aquaculture management that went into effect last July.

The ponds owned by 349 tra fish breeders in the province account for a 1,500-ha area that breeds tra fish.

The identification numbers are compulsory for tra fish growers as they ensure traceability of the fish used for processing and export.

To ensure traceability, individual breeders and commercial tra fish enterprises are required to store information about the fish for at least 24 months from the date of harvest or sale to processing companies.

With the new regulations, tra fish breeders can save time and money as they do not have to go to the sub-department to register every new batch of fish, according to the province Fisheries Sub-Department.

Under the decree, breeders of commercial tra fish are encouraged to use good agricultural practices such as VietGAP and Global GAP, as well as Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) and Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) standards.

Thanks to these certifications, tra fish from the province is now exported to around 100 foreign markets, including the US and EU.

The province has 24 seafood processing and export companies with a total production capacity of more than 429,000 tonnes of seafood a year.

Most of the facilities have been granted food safety certificates such as the HACCP and ISO.—VNS