There are no standards for arsenic in fish sauce.

"In our country, fish sauce products from many production facilities are exported to European, American, and Japanese markets. These are markets with the highest food safety and hygiene standards in the world. The fact that our fish sauce can be imported into these countries proves that it is very safe."

This was shared by Mr. Nguyen Tu Cuong - Member of the Standing Committee, Head of the Sustainable Fisheries Development Committee of the Vietnam Fisheries Association, former Director of the Department of Quality Management of Agricultural, Forestry and Fishery Products (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development), a leading expert on food safety in fisheries, in an interview with Dan Viet newspaper regarding the current controversy surrounding arsenic contamination in fish sauce.

Mr. Nguyen Tu Cuong - Member of the Standing Committee, Head of the Sustainable Fisheries Development Committee of the Vietnam Fisheries Association

In recent days, public opinion has been discussing the announcement by the Vietnam Association for Standards and Consumer Protection (VINASTAS), which mentioned the arsenic levels in fish sauce, causing public concern. How do you personally view this issue?

- In fish and seafood in general, arsenic exists in both inorganic and organic forms. Organic arsenic is a component of the aquatic organism; this component is completely non-toxic. If it were toxic, we would have died long ago, as Vietnamese people have been using fish sauce for generations. Inorganic arsenic comes from the environment; if it's from the bottom layer of the sea, then inorganic arsenic contaminates the fish. Total arsenic testing includes both organic and inorganic arsenic. The total arsenic index doesn't tell the whole story because it includes both toxic and non-toxic components. However, VINASTAS stated in its published report that no inorganic arsenic was detected, so our fish sauce is completely non-toxic.

Sir, are there any standards for arsenic in fish sauce?

Currently, there are no standards for arsenic in fish sauce. Before 2013, the European Union, the United States, and Japan required Vietnam to test for inorganic arsenic in seafood products, including fish sauce. However, since 2013, the European Union, the United States, and Japan have removed the inorganic arsenic requirement, so we have also removed the inorganic arsenic requirement for seafood products, including fish sauce.

I would also like to add that inorganic arsenic is present in very small amounts in fish and seafood, so small that the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has set the naturally occurring inorganic arsenic content in marine fish at 0.03 mg/kg and 0.1 mg/kg in other seafood when calculating arsenic consumption levels in human food. There are no regulations regarding arsenic in fish sauce; neither the world nor the Codex Standards (of WHO and FAO) specify this. This is reasonable, because people can eat 200-300 grams of fish a day but use very little fish sauce.

In our country, fish sauce products from many production facilities are exported to European, American, and Japanese markets, which have the highest food safety and hygiene standards in the world. The fact that our fish sauce can be imported into these countries proves that it is very safe.

Does this mean that the very high levels of organic arsenic in fish sauce samples, as announced by VINASTAS, do not affect consumer health?

As I mentioned above, organic arsenic is a structural component of the fish's body and is completely non-toxic.

Regarding the recent events surrounding fish sauce, do you have any suggestions for the relevant authorities regarding fish sauce standards?

- Regarding fish sauce standards, we propose that regulations on inorganic arsenic and histamine should have clear and specific indicators. Secondly, we need to redefine fish sauce. According to the definition in the fisheries industry, fish sauce is made from salted fish that has undergone natural fermentation. Therefore, if we use this definition, anything that doesn't fit this definition should not be called fish sauce.

Thank you, sir!

According to Dan Viet