VIETNAM AND CHINA AGREE TO ESTABLISH A "GREEN AGRICULTURAL CHANNEL" MECHANISM

This information was announced during the talks between Minister of Agriculture and Environment Do Duc Duy and Director General of the General Administration of Customs of China (GACC) Sun Mai Quan, which took place on May 28. The two sides agreed to enhance customs clearance capacity, increase working hours and manpower at border gates, and extend operating hours to reduce congestion during the agricultural season.

This information was announced within the framework of the talks between Minister of Agriculture and Environment Do Duc Duy and Director General of the General Administration of Customs of China (GACC) Sun Mai Quan, which took place on May 28. The two sides agreed to enhance customs clearance capacity, increase working hours and human resources at border gates, and extend operating hours to reduce congestion during the agricultural season.

Durian is a priority

Among the contents discussed by the two sides, durian is a product that received special attention. GACC has updated 829 growing area codes and 131 packing facilities in Vietnam that are allowed to export durian to China.

According to Minister Do Duc Duy, this is not only a step forward in technical procedures, but also a great source of spiritual encouragement for Vietnamese farmers and businesses. To maintain and expand this market, the Vietnamese side proposed three key cooperation directions: adjusting food safety control policies in a more favorable direction; speed up customs clearance; and supplement and approve qualified laboratories to test indicators such as Cadmium and Yellow O dye.

The Minister also emphasized that Vietnam has proactively handled food safety issues that have been warned. A summary report of investigation, control and remedial measures has been sent to GACC to demonstrate the capacity to control the quality of the production – preliminary processing – export chain.

At the meeting, both sides acknowledged that agricultural trade between Vietnam and China is increasingly tight. There are currently 28 protocols and memorandums of understanding signed, creating a legal corridor for the export of items such as fresh fruit, seafood, milk and many products for animal feed processing.

China is currently Vietnam’s largest agricultural export market. Every year, millions of tons of fruits such as watermelon, durian, dragon fruit, mango, longan, etc. are transported through the northern border gate.

Also during the working trip, Minister Do Duc Duy surveyed a number of large agricultural distribution centers in China such as Tan Phat Dia and China Supply & Marketing Group – which have extensive distribution networks and assets of nearly 200 billion yuan. This is considered an opportunity to connect Vietnamese enterprises with leading distribution systems in the world’s most populous market.

Early opportunities for grapefruit, lemon, seafood

GACC said it will soon send a working group to Vietnam to conduct field inspections of grapefruit and lemon growing areas and durian and chili packaging facilities – a necessary step to develop a draft new export protocol.

Regarding seafood, the two sides are completing procedures to sign a new protocol for exploited and fresh seafood. The drafts also integrate requirements for food safety control according to new standards, in line with current market realities.

The Chinese side proposed establishing a joint working group between the two sides to promptly handle arising problems, strengthen cooperation in testing, quarantine, and traceability, especially for high-risk products.

According to the General Department of Vietnam Customs, in 2024, the import-export turnover of agricultural, forestry and fishery products between Vietnam and China will reach 17.8 billion USD, up 14.6% over the same period in 2023. Of which, exports will reach 13.5 billion USD (up 14.3%), imports are estimated at 4.3 billion USD (up 21%). In the first 4 months of the year alone, the export turnover of agricultural, forestry and fishery products to China will reach 5.07 billion USD, up 3.7% over the same period last year.

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