The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has removed COVID-related quarantine requirements for frozen processed seafood products imported for the purpose of reprocessing for export.

It issued a circular to this effect last week, and it comes into force on September 11.

The ministry said it would foster exports of agricultural products by reducing the number of product categories subject to quarantine and using technology to speed up the customs process.

The Viet Nam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) had petitioned the Government to amend the quarantine regulations saying they were causing the seafood industry “big problems.”

Products processed from animals, animal products and those containing aquatic creatures, frozen, dried, cooked, or meant for instant use, continue to be quarantined, and this means the size and number of shipments subject to quarantine are huge, it said.

The maintenance and expansion of the list of "processed goods" that are subject to quarantine are an excessive and unnecessary measure, it said.

It goes against the Government’s policy of reducing the list of goods subject to specialised inspection, current legal regulations and international practices, it said.

VASEP also wants quarantining removed for processed seafood products imported for domestic consumption that are assessed as not posing a risk of spreading aquatic diseases. — VNS