Seafood Trade Matters The latest developments in International Seafood Trade & Market Access affecting Australian Seafood Exporters. November 10, 2022 In this edition: Country of origin labelling; New SIA resources; China trade discussions Reminder: 12-13 November export system outage The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Forestry (DAFF) has advised exporters of expected EXDOC system maintenance and associated outage from 10 am Saturday 12 November 2022 to 11 pm Sunday 13 November 2022 (AEDT). For more information about the outage, visit the DAFF website here. Second Export Supply Chain Service Industry BriefingAustrade's Export Supply Chain Service (ESCS) invites readers to attend the second public Industry Briefing on 14 November 2022 3:00pm - 4:00pm ADST. Click here to register now. The latest Export Supply Chain Snapshot (ESCS) is now available on the ESCS Webpage. Download the report on the ESCS website here. Country of Origin labelling for seafoodThe Federal government has allocated $1.6 million for mandatory labelling of seafood products in food service venues. This measure will help consumers make more informed choices about the seafood products they buy and raise awareness about imported products. Learn more about the new policy here. Seafood Industry Australia (SIA) has welcomed the move: ‘The implementation of mandatory country of origin labelling for seafood in foodservice has been one of SIA’s key priorities for the past five years, and a cause championed by industry and consumers for decades.’ Read more from SIA here. Seafood Industry Australia exporter resourcesSIA maintains a collection of useful resources for businesses, including product and market-specific export guides. Be sure to check the SIA Market Access and Trade page regularly to see the latest content, including supply chain guides for Hong Kong and Japan, and overseas barramundi and swordfish market reports. China: Foreign Ministers continue discussions on tradeAustralian and Chinese foreign ministers spoke by telephone earlier this week and Foreign Minister Penny Wong again raised the issue of China trade blockages. According to the Global Times readout, ‘There are a number of areas for cooperation. China has always imported goods from Australia, such as iron ore, coal, natural gas, agricultural products, seafood and dairy products, and the trade will certainly continue, analysts said.’ Read more here. Budget Support for Simplified Trade SystemThe October 2022-23 Budget has re-committed $187.1 million over 4 years for the government’s Simplified Trade System program. This includes $12.6 million to coordinate whole-of-government efforts to deliver regulatory, process, digital and data improvements to simplify trade interactions with government. Learn more about the program at www.simplifiedtrade.gov.au SIA has provided a summary of Budget measures relevant to seafood businesses here. This includes the announcement of funding for the national rollout of their industry-specific mental health program, Stay Afloat. Austrade website upgradeAustrade has completed a major upgrade to export.business.gov.au. The site now includes data-driven guidance on how to find strong markets for your specific product based on Austrade’s bespoke Trade Information Model. Visit the website here. Global seafood market access and trade policyRussian seafood continues to find its way into overseas markets, despite Western sanctions. Seafoodsource.com reports Russian seafood exports are up by 18 percent in the first half of 2022, with growing exports in key markets, including South Korea, China, the Netherlands, Nigeria, and Japan. Read more here. Singapore has introduced new voluntary standards for domestic food producers aimed at improving quality assurance. According to the Straits Times, “SS 670 Specification for Good Aquaculture Practice will apply to open-cage farming, pond farming, closed containment farming systems for fish, crustaceans and shellfish and covers the following areas of aquaculture farm production: Food safety and quality, animal health and welfare, environmental integrity the socio-economic aspects.” Read more from the Straits Times here, and from Singapore Food Agency here. The United States Department of Agriculture will buy as much as US$25 million worth of Gulf Shrimp as part of efforts to ‘provide relief to Louisiana’s shrimp industry which has faced several hardships in a row: Hurricane Ida and other natural disasters, repeated openings of the Bonnet Carre Spillway, unfair trade practices, illegal chemicals, skyrocketing inflation, gas prices, and supply chain issues.’ Read more here. The United States Food and Drug Administration has published more information and FAQs around its proposal to establish additional traceability recordkeeping requirements. Read more on the US FDA website here. Cameroon government officials are prioritising the restoration of shrimp market access into the European Union. Businessincameroon.com reports: ‘The EU has banned shrimp shipments from Cameroon since 2004, citing a lack of hygiene in the process of capturing, handling, conserving and transporting shipments. Since then, the African country has turned to Asia, which has become its main shrimp buyer.’ Read the full story here. The STAG is funded by partners:
The Seafood Trade Advisory Group (STAG) is jointly funded by the Australian government and the fishing industry. We receive funds from the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC).which is a statutory authority within the portfolio of the Federal Minister for Agriculture, Water and the Environment. Any information provided in this STAG publication is general in nature. Before acting on any information provided, you should consider its appropriateness to your individual circumstances and business objectives. |