Shipments to China account for 22% of total agro-forestry-fishery exports

Proccessing shrimps in a plant (Photo: VNA)

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the export value to China grew 13.8% year-on-year, while that to other traditional markets like the US and Japan dropped. Between the beginning of the year and now, despite decreasing-purchasing-power-affected negative impacts facing the global trade, positive growth has been logged for the turnover of Vietnamese farm produce shipped to China.

Currently, China has given permissions for 12 vegetables and fruits, over 800 seafood processing facilities, and 48 kinds of seafood from Vietnam. The nation has also allowed the pilot import of Vietnamese passion fruit and chili.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Phung Duc Tien said Vietnam will continue negotiating with China protocols on import-export products, including watermelon, frozen durians, chili, herbs, and citrus fruit.

According to Ngo Xuan Nam, deputy director of the Vietnam Sanitary and Phytosanitary Notification Authority and Enquiry Point, Chinese consumers are increasingly paying attention to farm produce quality, with those in large cities willing to splash out on high-quality goods of clear origins. Producers and businesses, therefore, need to standardise the quality, packaging, food safety, and origins of their goods in line with requirements from Chinese importers.

It is also necessary to complete logistics infrastructure serving exports and increase the application of advanced technology to increase efficiency and cut costs, Nam noted./.