PACIFIC fisheries officials are moving to shore up compliance with new European Union food-safety rules that could affect 97 per cent of EU-listed Pacific Island-flagged freezer vessels authorised to export to the bloc.
National Competent Authority officials from Fiji, Kiribati, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu gathered in Suva this week for a two-week technical training on Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/1449, which entered into force on January 27 and introduce tighter requirements for freezer vessels supplying the EU seafood market.
The regulation comes after EU auditors found that some freezer vessels in the global supply chain were not consistently reaching the required minus 18 degrees Celsius in brine.
Under the new rules, tuna frozen above minus 18 degrees, including product frozen to around minus nine degrees, may be sold only to canneries.
Tuna destined for direct human consumption, including sashimi, fresh steaks and premium retail products, must meet the colder threshold.
“When tuna is not frozen correctly, bacteria produce histamine in the fish flesh, a toxin that cannot be removed by cooking or further processing,” said FFA Market Access Specialist Ratu Jope Tamani.
“It causes scombroid poisoning, with symptoms ranging from rashes and nausea to severe allergic reaction.”
The training, organised by the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency through the EU-funded Pacific–European Union Marine Partnership, focused on vessel engineering, refrigeration systems, hazard controls, temperature monitoring and EU audit requirements.
Tamani said the new regime places the burden on national regulators to prove compliance.
“The compliance responsibility sits with the National Competent Authority of our Pacific Island nations,” he said.
“Our job is to make sure they have the technical knowledge to carry it out. That is what protects our countries’ place in the EU market and the revenue that comes with it.”
Fiji’s Head of Food Safety Unit, Taina Rauvala, said some resistance from industry was likely, especially among operators that rely on brine freezing.
“There is some pushback expected from those using brine freezing,” she said.
“Getting the NCA and industry on the same page is our immediate challenge.”
She said the stakes go beyond technical compliance. Fiji’s tuna enters the EU duty-free under its Interim Economic Partnership Agreement with the bloc.
“Europe has the strictest food safety rules in the world. If Fiji loses the EU’s trust, that trade deal disappears, and the damage would hurt workers, families and businesses right across the country.
“Getting into the EU market can be straightforward. Staying in is the hard part.”
Solomon Islands National Chief Health Inspector Patricia Soqoilo said the challenge is not only legal but operational.
“It is not enough to know what the law says,” she said.
“Our officers need to understand how freezing works on a vessel, the engineering, the HACCP controls, the critical control points.”
Kiribati officials said regional support has already strengthened their technical capacity, while Tuvalu officials said the rules underscore the need for knowledge and support rather than exemptions.
“Compliance is non-negotiable,” said National Competent Authority Technical Officer Alipate Momoka.
“We are not asking for easier rules. We are asking for the knowledge and support to meet the rules that exist.”
FFA said similar training has already been delivered in the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia, with Papua New Guinea next.
