Qatar lifts ban on frozen seafood imports from India

The ban was imposed last November, just before the FIFA World Cup, in response to the alleged detection of Vibrio cholera in a few consignments from India. In the run-up to the football tournament, Qatari authorities informed India that the ban was temporary due to a lack of testing laboratories in their country. Since then, the Government of India's Department of Commerce, in collaboration with the Indian embassy in Qatar, has been working tirelessly to resolve the issue. A series of meetings with Qatar's Ministry of Public Health had resulted in the February 16 notification lifting the ban on frozen seafood. However, restrictions on the export of chilled seafood remain in place. "This week is proving to be very good for the seafood exporters in India, considering a similar lift in the suspension by China," said MPEDA Chairman D.V. Swami, who is in town for the February 15-17 India International Seafood Show. "We hope that Qatar's restrictions on chilled seafood will be lifted ...