Brazil imposes a new barrier to the entry of Ecuadorian shrimp

The resumption of Ecuadorian shrimp exports to Brazil, after 18 years of a phytosanitary barrier due to the white spot plague in 1999, would be at risk due to a lawsuit filed in that country by the Brazilian Shrimp Breeders Association, that seeks to stop the entry.

Last February, the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Supply of Brazil approved Ecuadorian imports, after a risk analysis that took from 2012 to this year, said José Antonio Camposano, head of the National Chamber of Aquaculture (CNA).

However, Itamar Rocha, president of the shrimp guild of that country, told aquaculture magazines that Ecuador has ten types of diseases registered by the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), seven diseases have not been identified in Brazil. He said infections may occur in local production, an argument that guild used to file the lawsuit. (I)