Guyana takes steps for US to lift catfish ban

Last Updated on Thursday, 8 August 2024, 7:23 by Writer

Guyana continues to take numerous steps to convince the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) that the now six-year-old ban on catfish exports should be lifted, officials said Wednesday.

Chief Fisheries Officer of the Ministry of Agriculture, Denzil Roberts said Guyana’s relevant fisheries regulations and inspection manuals have been updated.

US Ambassador to Guyana, Nicole Theriot said Wednesday that Guyana in late May submitted its latest responses to several questions.

Confirming that the replies were sent, the Chief Fisheries Officer hoped that they would meet the US approval. “The recent submissions were handed in and it is hoped that this would satisfy the requirements of the US authorities,” he said.

The American envoy said she was optimistic that the US ban on Guyana’s wild-caught catfish, which was imposed in March 2018, would be lifted soon but she could not offer a timeframe. Ms Theriot did not rule out the USDA asking more questions of Guyanese authorities in keeping with its “very strict” process and guidelines. “Guyana is far advanced in this process…once we have reviewed that, if we have any additional questions, we’ll send that back. If, however, they are satisfied, then we can start the process for allowing catfish exports back into the United States,” she said.

The US Ambassador acknowledged that the ban imposition period appeared to be a very lengthy, but ultimately “when you’re talking about the health and safety of your citizens, you have to be incredibly careful.”

Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha has repeatedly blamed the previous APNU+AFC administration for the catfish ban saying that no response had been given to the US in 2017.

Up to the time of the ban, Guyana earned just under US$1 million annually from catfish exports to the US.