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Fish sauce makers seek to protect name
The Association of Phu Quoc Fish Sauce Producers has begun to register the Phu Quoc trademark in the European market to deal with widespread fakes marketed by foreign companies.
The registration will specify the origin of Phu Quoc fish sauce as well as the conditions that the product should meet to qualify to carry the trademark.
Association chairwoman Nguyen Thi Tinh said the move aimed to remove low-quality products claiming the Phu Quoc tag in the European market.
Several overseas companies are taking advantage of the popularity of Phu Quoc fish sauce brand name to produce fake products and sell widely in Europe, adversely affecting the Kien Giang Province-based product highly favoured by domestic and foreign consumers.
In Thailand, the production and export of the so-called Phu Quoc fish sauce has gone uncontrolled with some Thai firms allegedly registering the Phu Quoc Fish Sauce brand in other countries.
The national Industrial Property Department recognised the origin and name of Phu Quoc fish sauce in mid-2001, stipulating that only fish-sauce making establishments based on Phu Quoc island can use the name.
It also required each fish sauce maker on the island to register their own brand names.
Phu Quoc fish sauce gets its unique flavour from anchovy caught off Phu Quoc island which is marinated with alum-free salt from Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province.
An estimated 10 to 12 million litres of Phu Quoc fish sauce is produced every year. It has a 10-15 per cent share of the domestic market and is exported to the US, EU and Asian markets.
VietNamNet, Viet Nam News
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