Information on online forum: Promotion of Trade in Agricultural Products and Foodstuffs between Vietnam and Yunnan Province (China) organized by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development on February 10, 2023 Mr. Huynh Tan Dat, Deputy Director of the Department of Plant Protection (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) said there is still a situation where codes are imitated by using false codes for export, which affects the reputation of Vietnamese goods.

Occupy less than 5% of China market

Mr. Vuong Trinh Quoc, chief executive officer of the Lao Cai Border Gate Economic Zone, said activities at the Lao Cai International Border Gate have returned to normal as before the epidemic from Jan. 8 to now.

“Last month, more than 6,000 vehicles imported and exported goods through the border gates in Lao Cai province, mainly through the Kim Thanh border gate. Of these, there were 2,000 exports and 4,000 imports, with the main products being fresh fruit, green beans, peanuts and cassava, of which fresh dragon fruit accounted for 80%,” Quoc said.

Lao Cai also creates favorable conditions for Vinh Long, Long An and Ninh Thuan provinces to export agricultural products through the province’s border gate. The province also promotes infrastructure, policies and procedures to meet the needs of businesses.

Mr. Le Thanh Hoa, deputy director of the Department of Agricultural Products Quality, Processing and Market Development (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development), said China’s reopening of the border gates from January 8, 2023 is good news for businesses in the two countries, but also a challenge for Vietnamese exporters.

Mr. Hoa pointed out that companies wishing to export to China must complete their documents by June 30, 2023 from now on. For fruit products in particular, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has assigned more than 2,000 codes to export companies.

“The policy of cross-border trade with China also has a major impact on fresh fruits and vegetables. Regarding VAT, we have made specific recommendations on the RCEP (Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement) to the State Bank of Vietnam and the Ministry of Industry and Trade,” Mr. Hoa shared.

Mr. Huynh Tan Dat, deputy director of the Plant Protection Department, said the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the General Administration of Customs of China signed the Plant Health Inspection Protocol for agricultural products including: bananas, durian, mangosteen, black jelly, rice bran and rice. At the same time, the ministry is also negotiating the signing of a protocol to officially export some traditional fresh fruits such as watermelon, dragon fruit, mango, jackfruit, longan, lychee and rambutan; temporary export guidelines for chili and passion fruit.

The two sides are also negotiating techniques for export: sweet potato (signs the protocol, currently the two sides are preparing for the field inspection of the packaging facilities), medicinal herbs, grapefruit and some fruits of the citrus and coconut tree group. At the same time, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has also submitted documentation for pomegranates and cardamom to the Chinese side.

The deputy director of the phytosanitary department pointed out some difficulties that exist when exporting Vietnamese agricultural products to China: There is still a situation where codes are imitated by using false codes for export as photos, which affects the reputation of Vietnamese goods .

“To solve this problem, the Plant Protection Agency recently set up a database and published the planting area codes. At the same time, coordinate with the factory quarantine posts at the border gates to ensure strict control,” Dat said.

Before many companies reported difficulties in registering to export rice to the Chinese market, Mr. Huynh Tan Dat said: So far, only 22 companies are officially allowed to export rice and bran products to China.

“In order to be approved for export to the Chinese market, companies must ensure sufficient information as prescribed and fully demonstrate the composition of the documents related to the production stage in the field to harvesting, pre-processing and processing to ensure food safety HACCP.” , stressed Mr. Dat.

RECOMMENDATIONS EXTEND CUSTOMS TIME TO 22 HOURS

Ms. Nguyen Thi Nguyet, vice president of the Lao Cai Business Association, raised the issue: If farms have to stop at the border gate for too long, they will suffer damage from the maintenance phase.

“Chinese companies receive maximum conditions for the fastest and safest customs clearance when exporting to Vietnam. I hope that the Yunnan side will also create the same conditions with goods from Lao Cai. On the other hand, please extend the customs clearance time to 22 hours daily,” Ms. Nguyet suggested.

dr Tra My, President of the Provisional Vietnamese Business Association in China, said, “Many people mistakenly believe that the Chinese market is easy. We have operated here for many years and have found that this is not the case.

Ms. My noted that domestic companies “squeeze” quantity but forget to ensure quality. “The other day I went to a durian warehouse and saw a lot of fruit that still had worms and aphids on the skin. If we keep trying to close such containers, chances are high that they will be returned.

“The lack of quality export goods will affect the reputation of the industry. The fact that some companies are borrowing codes for export will have major consequences,” Ms My warned.

Ms. Tra My expressed that it is “very unfortunate” that farmers and companies have not actively learned how to research door-to-door sales to Chinese partners. This time, Ms. My brought home many orders, including two orders of 60,000 tons per year, the smallest order 10,000 tons, a total of 150,000 tons.

Vietnamese companies exporting goods to China have long focused on land, forgetting that the sea route has many advantages. Our association has members in Shandong, Shanghai ready to assist when businesses and relatives go by sea.

Concluding the forum, Vice Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Tran Thanh Nam said that currently in Lao Cai, more than 500 trucks export agricultural products every day, while in Lang Son it averages over 500 vehicles per day, while 800 vehicles are cleared. Accordingly, vehicle traffic is increasing.

Businesses must proactively contact entities such as the Border Gate Management Board for information on the progress of customs clearance, avoiding congestion, ensuring agricultural product quality, customs clearance time and transportation costs, regarding the preparation for export of chili, Sweet potato , passion fruit, provinces with many of these products need to check packaging plants and raw material areas for registration; Provinces wishing to organize the export ceremony of the first batch of goods are required to apply. early meeting with the Ministry”, Deputy Minister Nam noted.

Deputy Minister Nam added that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is currently continuing to promote coordination with authorities on the side to open the door for avocado, grapefruit, pineapple, custard apple and cardamom products, strong negotiations. However, companies need to adjust to packaging facilities and growing primaries.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development also instructed the Department of Quality, Processing and Market Development to contact the Vietnamese Consulate General in Kunming, China to discuss the content; sent a delegation to Yunnan Province to promote agricultural products in this market, especially aquatic products.