Vietnam and China sign MoU on agricultural cooperation and fruit consumption

The Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association and the Guangxi-ASEAN Trade Promotion Association have signed a Memorandum of Understanding on agricultural and fruit consumption cooperation.

The MoU is a fruitful outcome of the “Vietnam-China Fruit Export Promotion Online Conference” co-hosted by the Agro-product Processing and Market Development Department (under MARD), the Guangxi-ASEAN Trade Promotion Association, and the Vietnamese consulate general in Nanning, China on August 2.

The event intended to put into effect the terms of an agreement between the Agro-product Processing and Market Development Department and the administration of PingXiang town, Guangxi, China, on cooperation in trade and agricultural product processing.

Vietnam is presently China's biggest trading partner, whereas China is Vietnam's second-largest importer of products in the world.

To date, only nine Vietnamese fresh fruit varieties have been approved for official importation into China's market, including dragon fruits, watermelon, lychee, longan, banana, mango, jackfruit, rambutan, and mangosteen. MARD is pushing the market opening of durian, pomelo, passion fruit, avocado, custard apple, coconut, cardamom, and pineapple in order of priority. China has temporarily permitted the import of Vietnamese sweet potatoes and chilies.

Agro-trade between Vietnam and China has flourished in recent years. However, as a result of the significant effect of Covid-19, the overall import-export transaction of agricultural goods between Vietnam and China reached approximately USD 14.3 billion in 2020, a decrease of 4%.

In which vegetable exports were USD 1.8 billion, a decrease of 25.7 percent from the previous year. Exports of vegetables to China increased by 16 percent in the first half of 2019, hitting USD 1.2 billion.

Agricultural trade potential between the two nations is enormous. Vietnam is the world's 17th biggest exporter of agricultural goods and the ASEAN region's second-largest. Numerous agricultural goods from Vietnam are ranked first in the world, notably tropical fruit products... and China is the primary destination market, accounting for about 64% (figures for 2020) of Vietnam's vegetable and fruit exports.

Numerous supply chains for fruits such as dragon fruit, mango, longan, lychee, rambutan, grapefruit, and watermelon that adhere to clean, organic, and sustainable agricultural practices are exported to a number of countries with stringent import regulations, including the United States, Europe, Japan, and Korea.

However, fruit items such as mango, lychee, longan, banana, and dragon fruit have a high seasonality, making consumption difficult, particularly in bad circumstances. Early this year, the Covid-19 epidemic in Vietnam continued to grow in a complex manner.

The Memorandum of Understanding on agriculture and fruit consumption provides an opportunity for Vietnamese associations and businesses to collaborate with Chinese agencies, associations, and businesses to promote cooperation and investment in production and processing chains, ensuring quality standards that comply with bilateral regulations, establishing channels for goods circulation, and overcoming obstacles posed by current Covid-19 pandemic.