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Export Requirements

Vietnam Export Procedures

Firms desiring to export seafood products to Vietnam are required to be approved by the Vietnamese authority, NAFIQAD, prior to shipment. Once approved and listed on the NAFIQAD website firms must request an Export Health certificate from their local NOAA Fisheries Seafood Inspection Office (SIP). Products will be lot inspected prior to certification if the firm is not a participant in the HACCP QMP program with SIP.

In general, for being approved as a company eligible for exports of animal products to Vietnam, the company must provide all information described in the Appendix 3 (attached); the CFN or FEI number from FDA; and the form must be signed by a representative of the company.

Once the Appendix 3 form is completed e-mail the form to: usda4circ25@gmail.com and copy Melissa.Beaudry@noaa.gov and Steven.Wilson@noaa.gov. The Hanoi Foreign Agricultural Service is checking this e-mail account daily to forward to authorized agency in Vietnam for their approval.

Firms may check their status as to whether they are approved using the following link:

http://www.nafiqad.gov.vn/copy_of_list-company/fish-and-fishery-products-1/united-state-approved-list-updated-26-01-2011/view

SIP personnel will use this link to ascertain if the firm has been approved. If the firm is not on this list they cannot issue an Export Health Certificate.

If there are any questions please contact Steven Wilson, Chief Quality Officer at Steven.Wilson@noaa.gov or 301-427-8312.

Link to Appendix 3 form

Procedures for US Processors exporting fishery products to Brazil

In January, 2010, Brazilian Ministry, The Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture Control published aquatic health regulations on the fishery products into Brazil. These new regulations are within the scope of their authority under OIE and WTO guidelines and are currently in effect. The SIP will continue to issue certification to those US facilities that have applied to be part of the USDC SIP program upon lot inspection and will give industry until December 30, 2011 to become a participant under the program. The purposes of the new regulations are to protect wild and farmed resources and to maintain their health status in order for Brazil to export fishery products to the other countries. Brazil will require importers in Brazil to obtain import permits prior to bringing seafood products into Brazil; US exporters to be under the US competent authority control; and product shipments to have US competent authority inspection and certification. The Brazilian regulations request that the export certificates be bilingual with Portuguese and the exporting country language. The US has negotiated an English only certificate to be used with all fishery products.

Impacts on US competent authority and exporters
The USDC NOAA Fisheries Seafood Inspection Program (SIP) is the competent US authority for aquatic health certification for wild-harvested seafood exports (live and products) intended for human consumption, as per MOU between NOAA Fisheries and USDA/APHIS.

For fishery products destined for Brazil, NOAA SIP has agreed to:

Approve processing facilities under the USDC SIP Approved facilities program prior to export
Certify the product and species being exported
Verify that the exporter is on the Brazilian Approved List (Ministério da Agricultura, Pecuária e Abastecimento – MAPA , Secretaria de Defesa Agropecuária – SDA, Departamento de Inspeção de Produtos de Origem Animal – DIPOA, Serviço de Inspeção Federal – SIF)
Verify the exporter completed label registration form
Lot inspect all shipments
Issue SIP Export Health certificates for all shipments. (English only Brazil certificate Approved)

US Exporters will be required to follow the guidelines listed below for the exportation of fishery products to Brazil.

Processing facility must be under the USDC SIP Approved facilities program prior to export
A formal letter of request to export must be forwarded to the US Embassy/USDA requesting to be placed on the Approved List.
After Facility Registration is approved, the US facility must identify a Brazilian importer and complete a label registration form. (NOAA will sign this for verification, only for USDC SIP Approved Facilities)
The label registration form must be presented to the Brazilian authorities by the importer for approval.
All products destined for Brazil will have a USDC/NOAA/SIP inspection prior to departure.
All inspected product must have the SIP Export Health certification for Brazil prior to shipment.

These requirements are the procedural points as agreed to by NOAA Fisheries through the US Embassy/USDA for Brazil.

Updated Approved list and Label Approval Packages can be requested from: Priscila.Ming@fas.usda.gov

Procedures for US Processors exporting fishery products to the Russian Federation

Effective November 10, 2010 U.S. seafood firms in the supply chain desiring to produce, pack, store, or ship fish and fishery products for export to the Russian Federation must meet the requirements of the NOAA Seafood Inspection Program to be “approved establishments” in accordance with the regulations and policies of the NOAA Seafood Inspection Program. Only establishments approved by the NOAA Seafood Inspection Program and subsequently approved by Rosselkhoznadzor, the Russian food safety agency, may receive certification from NOAA for export to the Russian Federation. This export procedure is in required by Russian law and is in accordance with a Memorandum of Understanding approved by United States and Russian officials.

Link to Federal Register Notice
Link to MOU

Any firm requesting an export health certificate for the Russian Federation must be listed on the Russian Federation website:

(http://www.fsvps.ru/fsvps/importExport/usa/enterprises.html?productType=7&_language=en)

and be an approved establishment with the NOAA Seafood Inspection Program:

http://www.seafood.nmfs.noaa.gov/Participants_List11.pdf

All operations within the supply chain for a specific lot of product being shipped to the Russian Federation, including vessels, storage warehouses, and processors, are to be approved establishments of the NOAA Seafood Inspection Program. All supply chain points for a specific lot of product to be certified need not be listed on the Russian Federation website. However the requestor of the certificate may only request certificates for products that have originated, been handled, or processed by firms that are on the List of approved establishments for SIP. One exception exists, brokers, which may be listed on the Russian Federation site are not required to be approved establishments. Brokers are still required to send products that have met all the requirements.

Firms desiring to be listed on the Russian site of approved shippers must follow the following procedures:

Submit your request to the nearest Seafood Inspection Program Regional Inspection Branch. When submitting the request firms must provide the full name of the firm to be listed, the CFN or FEI number, address, type of operation (broker, processor, vessel, etc.) and products to be included on the list.

Submission requests for inclusion on the list are collected by SIP and submitted monthly. Inclusion on the list takes a minimum of 45 days from the time it is submitted by the NOAA Seafood Inspection Program to Rosselkhoznadzor.

Once a firm is listed and desires a certificate, they are to contact the servicing Regional Inspection Branch for such a request. The product lot must not only originate from and be handled by approved establishments it must also be inspected either through in-plant inspection service or lot inspected. Firms must be able to provide evidence the product came through approved establishments throughout the supply chain. (Note: As we work the final elements of the MOU, we are now only requiring the product be processed by an approved establishment. The industry will be notified through this website when it is required to have all points in the chain approved.)

Certificates must be issued prior to shipment.

This is the information SIP has at the moment for the Russian Federation. New Russian regulations are to be in force by January 1, 2012 and at this time it does not appear as if there will be any modifications to the MOU. However there are a number of analytical tests performed by the Russian border inspection posts and at times there are issues related to these test results. SIP will investigate any positive findings and report back to the Russian Federation.

Procedures for Export Health Certificates to the Republic of Korea

The Republic of Korea (ROK) requires Export Health Certificates for frozen cod heads, tuna heads, southern hake heads, visceral by-products such as edible fish roe, Pollock entrails, hard roe and the nidamental gland of squid.

Normal inspection procedures apply to these products, e.g. lot inspection, in-plant inspection or a current HACCP QMP system. All frozen fish heads must be cut so the head with pectoral and ventral fins are attached and the frozen edible parts, e.g. meat from the neck, lower jaw and cheek, are included.

The ROK also requires that U.S. exporters be on a list of approved facilities. Headquarters of the Seafood Inspection Program (SIP) has received an interim list from the US Food and Drug Administration of all seafood processors in good regulatory standing which will serve as our interim list until we are able to determine which firms actually export these products to ROK. This list has been submitted to the Korean Ministry of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MIFAFF). However to date we have not received word as to its acceptability or procedures to modify the list (add or delete list members). Once this procedure is agreed upon between our two governments SIP will only provide certificates to those facilities. Until that time certificates will be issued to all requestors under the conditions described above.

U.S. Department of Commerce/NOAA Fisheries • 1315 East West Highway • Silver Spring, MD 20910 • Phone (301) 427-8300 • Toll Free (800) 422-2750

Resources

Meetings between NOAA Fisheries and the Animal Plant Quarantine Inspection Service (AQSIQ) of the People’s Republic of China (PRC).

SIP details procedures for EU Policy Nonconformance

UPDATE 6/6/11: Requirements for Certain Seafood Commodities Exported to the Republic of Korea

U.S. Seafood Safe and Unaffected by Radiation Contamination from Japanese Nuclear Power Plant Incident

Our Vision:

"An informed society that has confidence in the seafood that they purchase, sell and consume today and in the future."

Our Mission:

To ensure the safety and quality as well as enhance the marketability and sustainability of seafood products for the benefit of the American consumer by providing science based inspection services to the seafood industry.