The Government and the shrimp sector maintain the commitment to fine-tune every detail of the production chain.
March 27, 2021 – 09h23
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/eluniverso/ZKR4E3SPOBEZTA5I74KZR4OBR4.jpg)
China lifted the suspension of export permits that was imposed on the Ecuadorian shrimp company Sociedad Nacional de Galapagos (Songa).
Ecuador’s ambassador in Beijing, Carlos Larrea, said that this announcement came after an active exchange of technical information between the parties, which allowed a constructive diplomatic negotiation based on bilateral dialogue.
“Ecuador has reinforced each biosafety measure to build trust and guarantee the health of its final consumers, since Ecuadorian shrimp must reach the table safely,” said Larrea.
He added that the Ecuadorian government and its shrimp sector maintain the commitment to “fine-tune every detail of the production chain, increase inspections, as well as disinfection and preservation of the integral traceability of shrimp, an issue in which the country exercises world leadership.”
Although it did not specify the reason why Beijing suspended the purchase of shrimp from the Songa company, the media reported last January that the Chinese customs authority had detected traces of the so-called white spot in a shipment of the Ecuadorian product, details the EFE agency .
The white spot syndrome is a disease that affects shrimp and causes the almost total death of larvae and juveniles in the production pools of the crustacean.
In the second half of last year, China lifted the import suspension of an Ecuadorian shrimp company for suspecting COVID-19 contamination on the walls of the container in which the product had arrived in the Asian country.
At least three Ecuadorian shrimp firms were suspended last year by the Chinese authorities due to the alleged presence of traces of coronavirus, although the measures were finally lifted.
This commercial impasse occurred at a time when Ecuador had reached a record in the export of its shrimp to China, since last May the Ecuadorian export to the Asian market represented 62% of its total supply.
With about $4 billion in sales a year, shrimp is one of Ecuador’s main non-oil export products, an industry that is more than 50 years old. (I)
Read the original coverage from El Universo at https://www.eluniverso.com/noticias/economia/china-levanta-suspension-de-exportacion-a-empresa-camaronera-songa-nota/
Check out our interactive timeline and review new updates, videos, research findings and updates from the Galapagos Islands in 2020
Want to learn more about the foreign distant-water fishing fleet near the outskirts of Ecuador’s Insular EEZ, which surround the Galápagos Marine Reserve?
Informing and sharing news on marine life, flora, fauna and conservation in the Galápagos Islands since 2017
© SOS Galápagos, 2021
