On April 3, the Phytosanitary Administration (Plant Protection) received a notice announcing the results of the online inspection of Vietnamese sweet potato companies exporting to China by that country’s General Administration of Customs (GACC).

Accordingly, Chinese experts conducted online inspections for 20 packaging plants on Vietnam’s proposed list, except for 3 companies that were examined during the risk analysis process.

Through online inspection and technical exchanges, Chinese experts confirmed: 13 out of 23 packaging plants meet the requirements of the Protocol on Quarantine Requirements for Sweet Potato Products.

The remaining 10 packaging plants still have to overcome some problems, such as: inferior management system, incomplete equipment, poor technical specifications or insufficient facilities protocol requirements.

Along with these 13 packing plants, the list of 70 sweet potato growing areas eligible for export to China has been published in full on the website of the Animal and Plant Quarantine Department of the General Administration of Customs of China at http://dzs.customs.gov.cn.

“It is recommended that the crop protection department do well the quarantine work before export and guide the companies to strictly comply with the requirements of the production and processing process,” the GACC statement said.

Earlier, on March 7-10, 2023, with the active coordination and support of the Ministry of Plant Protection and the embassies of the two countries, the Chinese team of experts conducted an online inspection of sweet potato farms to obtain the approval of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, approved export to China.

In the coming period, the Chinese side is willing to strengthen cooperation with Vietnam to further promote the development of trade in sweet potatoes in particular and agricultural products in general between the two countries.

The Protocol on Quarantine Requirements for Sweet Potatoes Exported to China was published on November 22, 2022. This is seen as an opportunity for Vietnamese farmers to develop extractive industry, increase economic value and gradually transition from unofficial to official export.

In addition to regulations on growing areas, monitoring of processing, packaging facilities, application of VietGAP standards or equivalent… The protocol requires the grower side to apply measures to prevent harmful organisms on purple sweet potatoes according to the annex.

The Phytosanitary Department remains committed to coordinating and supporting local technical agencies in propagation, dissemination, guidance and organization of implementation for businesses, cooperatives and people. The aim is to improve quality, ensure food hygiene and safety, and open up the market for sweet potato products more.