Fish exporters must join EU TRACES system

PanARMENIAN.Net - Companies exporting fish and fish products from Armenia to the European Union will be required to undergo inspections by the Food Safety Inspectorate and register in the EU's TRACES control system. The corresponding draft regulation has been approved by the Armenian government.

Armenia received official authorization on March 16, 2025, to export scaled fish and related products to the European Union. However, existing legislation has not until now established procedures for registering exporters, suspending registration or issuing health certificates, Sputnik Armenia reported.

Under the new regulation, businesses seeking access to the EU market must first apply to the Food Safety Inspectorate. The authority will verify whether production complies with EU food safety requirements, after which the company's details will be submitted for registration in the TRACES system.

“For the European Commission, information provided by the competent authority serves as a guarantee for confirming the registration of the business operator in the system,” the explanatory note to the draft states.

The new rules also establish the grounds for suspending registration, as well as the procedure for issuing health certificates for exported products.

According to the authors of the draft, the new regulations will enable Armenian fish producers to make practical use of the authorization to export to the European Union, expand export destinations and align production with international standards.

During her visit to Armenia on July 2, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced that Armenia would soon receive €18 million to help strengthen trade. She said the funding could support, among other initiatives, the establishment of an export promotion agency. Von der Leyen also noted that Armenia had been offered autonomous trade measures intended to help liberalize Armenian exports to the European Union.