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Be compliant, or face shrimp import suspension

EU ultimatum to Bangladesh

Jasim Uddin Khan
European Commission has given an ultimatum to Bangladesh to suspend shrimp imports from here if it fails to effectively implement its residue-monitoring plan before the next inspection takes place in November this year.
Residue Monitoring Plan (RMP) is a way by which a country gets eligibility to export shrimps with facility to analyse residues of substance including chloramphenicol, metabolites of nitrofurans, tetracycline, malachite green and crystal violet.
A letter signed by the commission's Head of Cabinet Philippe Brunet was sent last month to Special Assistant to Chief Adviser Manik Lal Samaddar, who is in charge of the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock.
"If the next commission inspection in Bangladesh will reveal that your authorities are not effectively implementing the guarantees provided, we will have no alternative, but to suspend the imports of crustaceans from Bangladesh until the problems are completely rectified," Brunet said inhi&letter.
He said the EC member states will continue finding residues of substances not authorised under Community legislation or residues of veterinary medicinal products that exceed the maximum residue limits laid down by the EU.
Earlier, the commission proposed Bangladesh to test all consignments of shrimps by the EU member states on their arrival at the EU border but Bangladesh government in a meeting with a EU representative on April 24 this year assured that it will effectively implement the residue monitoring plan and test all the consign-
ments of crustaceans prior to their exports to the EU member states.
Industry sources said Bangladesh gave promise to the EU that it will implement 'Method validation' and of HACCP (hazard analysis and critical control points) standard at field level so that all possible sources of harmful substance can be checked.
Method validation is the process used to confirm that the analytical procedure employed for a specific test that is suitable for its intended use. Results from method validation can be used to judge the quality, reliability and consistency of analytical results; it is an integral part of any good analytical practice.
“Despite the promise has been made before EU, the government is yet to bring any significant development in method validation other than procuring a LCMSMS machine,” an exporter said preferring anonymity.
He said the shrimp sector is still behind the required EC's HACCP regulations at field level.
When asked, a high official of the fisher-
ies and livestock ministry said they are hopeful that the method validation will be fully implemented before November.
"We already started testing all the five substance and an internationally reputed expert from Food and Agriculture Organization will arrive in September to validate the testing,”
No rejection of any consignment by EU member states during the last nine months proved that our products are fully free from any harmful substance and the European team will happy to see these facilities, he added.
Earlier in July 1997, the European Commission imposed a ban on imports of shrimp products from Bangladesh into the EU on the ground that exports of this commodity did not meet the stringent provisions of EC's HACCP regulations.
Bangladesh fetched USS 449 million from exports of frozen foods, mostly shrimp, in the ten months of the 2007-08 fiscal against the target of $ 691 million exports for the fiscal.
jasim@thedailystar.net