CPF no show slammed as blackchin tilapia talk goes fishy

Charoen Pokphand Foods (CPF) faced criticism from a House committee for failing to attend a meeting to address questions regarding the importation of blackchin tilapia for research purposes back in 2010.

The Move Forward Party MP for Bangkok, Nattacha Boonchaiinsawat, who also serves as the deputy chairman of the subcommittee investigating the spread of the invasive species, stated that CPF had been invited to clarify a document provided by the Department of Fisheries. However, the company sent a letter indicating their absence before the scheduled meeting.

“I want the company to use the stage to communicate with the public as there is growing scepticism regarding the issue.”

When questioned about the next steps, Nattacha mentioned that the House committee would rely on information from officials, including the Fisheries Department and the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, to reach a conclusion.

Next week, the Council of State will be invited to provide advice to government agencies on potential lawsuits. Relevant agencies will also be asked to help assess the ecological damage caused by the invasive species, which has negatively impacted numerous farms.

Nattacha noted that the Fisheries Department indicated that CPF, the sole company granted permission to import the species, had violated the conditions of its 2010 permit.

Department investigation

CPF informed the department that the fish had perished within three weeks of arriving in Thailand. The company was then required to send 50 fish carcasses to the department’s lab, but an investigation revealed no such samples were provided, said Nattacha.

“It is implausible that, of all 5,000 samples from 2007 to 2017 kept in the lab, only samples from 2011 would get lost during a flood.”

The deputy chairman added that the subcommittee will submit evidence to relevant agencies for legal action.

The CPF yesterday submitted a report to the Higher Education, Science and Innovation Committee explaining its process for importing 2,000 blackchin tilapia fingerlings from Ghana to Thailand.

Premsak Wanuchsoontorn, Executive Vice-President for Aquaculture Business at CPF, explained that the fish arrived at Suvarnabhumi airport on December 22, 2010.

Many of the fish died during transportation, with only 600 surviving but in poor health. By January 6, 2011, only 50 fish remained alive, he said.

CPF decided to terminate the project by killing the remaining fish with chlorine. Their remains were buried with lime on January 7.

Premsak insisted that CPF had not conducted any research related to fish since January 2011 and that it did not introduce the fish to Thai waterways, reported Bangkok Post.