Charoen Pokphand Foods (CPF) have been warned to stop advertising its frozen jade perch edible products at the Kaset Fair at Kasetsart University within three days, or its license to raise the fish species, which is not indigenous to Thailand, may be revoked.
Fisheries Department Director-General Chalermchai Suwannarak said yesterday (Friday) that CPF, which is part of the Charoen Pokphand agro-industrial conglomerate, was granted permission to import jade perch, to be raised in captivity for research purposes, in 2018.
Last year, he said the company sought permission to raise the fish in captivity for commercial purposes and permission was granted, on the condition that live fish cannot be moved from the restricted area and only frozen fish can be sold through the company’s outlets, such as Makro, CP Fresh Mart and Lotus.
The company is also required to report the whole process of the research and its outcomes to the Fisheries Department.
Chalermchai said that CPF went ahead with publicising the sale of frozen jade perch and ready-made foods at the Kaset Fair, which opened yesterday, without notifying the Fisheries Department in advance.
He warned that the company may lose its license if it fails to stop the unauthorised publicity in three days.
CPF’s booth, which features sales of frozen jade perch and free tastings, attracted many customers yesterday.
One of the tasters said that the meat is very fresh and has the flavour and texture of a deep-sea snow fish, which is expensive.
CPF General Manager Sombat Pornkhunthod said that the company has permission from the Fisheries Department to sell frozen jade perch meat and the company has thoroughly checked the stocks.
He claimed that the company received permission from the Fisheries Department to showcase the frozen fish and prepared foods at the Kaset Fair.
He also dismissed the possibility that the fish could survive in a tropical environment, such as that in Thailand, if it managed to escape captivity, saying that it is a cold water fish and even raising it in captivity is difficult.
