KARACHI, Nov 23: The European Union (EU) has outlined a detailed inspection programme for their trading partners during 2007. Pakistan has also been included in the list for examination of hygienic conditions at fish harbour and processing industries.

However, the Programme for Inspections 2007 by the Food and Veterinary Office of the European Commission does not mention any specific date for inspections of Pakistan’s fisheries sector and also for other countries.

But, sources in the fishery sector said, the EU usually informs the Marine Fisheries Department (MFD) of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture and Livestock before visiting the harbour and processing plants.

The prime objective of the EU inspection is to ensure that the Marine Fisheries Department applies relevant EU standards or their equivalent with respect to products intended for export to the European Union countries, they added.

According to the programme, a copy of which was made available to Dawn, the majority of audits and inspections will focus on the assessment of eligibility/approvals for export.

Various factors play a role in the selection of inspections in the third world countries including Pakistan, such as size of the existing trade and potential health risks associated with goods to be exported to the EU.

While the main part of these inspections is targeted at a review of existing approvals of major trade partners and follow up to previous missions, there are also a number of new requests for approval which will need to be evaluated, it said.

It may be recalled that the EU delegation had visited harbour and processing industries in 1997 but Pakistan’s name was not included in any of the list.

However, exports to European Union countries remained continued without any interruption.

In March 1999, another EU delegation came here and included Pakistan’s name in EU’s harmonised countries’ list by allowing 23 plants for export of fish products.

In January 2005, the EU inspection team visited harbour and processing plants. In its general conclusion, the EU found 21 deficiencies at the harbour and processing plants.

It said that the Marine Fisheries Department was not able to demonstrate that the law in force, which were intended to deliver the guarantees prescribed by the Commission Decision 2000.83/EC, were effectively applied and verified.

The Marine Fisheries Department was not in a position to certify the special conditions governing imports of fish products originating from Pakistan. The EU conclusion further said that taking into account the findings recorded in production sites, the fish products imported from Pakistan could not be considered as free from potential public health risk.

As a result, Pakistani had to suspend export of fish products to the EU from January to August 2005. Later, the ministry of food lifted the self-imposed ban on assurance of the Sindh government that it would meet all the standards.

Sources said that upcoming EU mission in 2007 is aimed at verifying as to how the competent authority (MFD) had so far applied the relevant EU standards.

EU countries are the major buyers of fish products out of Pakistan’s total export of $198 million per annum. European buyers usually import shrimps, cuttlefish, sole fish and squid from Pakistan.