Vietnam is UK's important agricultural partner

Close, practical and productive collaboration

On November 11, a MARD delegation led by Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien worked with the United Kingdom's Department of Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to the United Kingdom, Mr. Nguyen Hoang Long, also attended the meeting.

During the discussion, Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien stated that the purpose of the visit was to succeed and build upon the May trip. In addition, Vietnam reaffirms its hope to foster close, practical, and successful cooperation with the United Kingdom in agricultural and rural development.

"With the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the UK Department of Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs, the two countries will hopefully develop their cooperation into a strategic partnership, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 2023, "stated the deputy minister.

Since the United Kingdom-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement went into effect, agricultural cooperation between the two countries has progressed. The yearly import-export volume of agricultural, forest and fisheries goods between the two nations approaches USD 1 billion. 

According to the head of MARD, Vietnam has negotiated, signed, and implemented seventeen FTAs, including new-generation FTAs such as the UKVFTA, EVFTA, and CPTPP.

"Due to its position, the United Kingdom remains Vietnam's top priority market for cooperation," the Deputy Minister emphasized.

Because the agricultural products of the two nations do not directly compete but rather complement one another, the MARD leader anticipated that the discussion will boost the level of collaboration between the two parties to a new level ".

In response, Ms. Tamara Finkelstein, Permanent Secretary of DEFRA, stated that Vietnam is a significant partner of the United Kingdom. As a demonstration, one of ten British agricultural counselors was dispatched to Vietnam.

She also praised MARD for the response in October regarding the exports of chicken products to the Vietnamese market. She agreed that global food security must be enhanced further and anticipated that collaboration with Vietnam would be swiftly implemented once agreements were reached.

Promote market opening

During the meeting, Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien reviewed Vietnam's recent achievements in agriculture, particularly in crop production, such as reducing land area, boosting productivity, and boosting output, to improve agricultural production and achieve sustainable development goals.

One of Vietnam's most important agricultural exports to the United Kingdom and European markets is rice, particularly fragrant rice. Vietnam would be able to export 13-14 million tons of rice in 2022, according to the Deputy Minister, based on the existing economic pace.

The Deputy Minister recommended that the two parties open markets for four key product categories, including:

First, for plant-based items (agricultural products), the Deputy Minister requested that the United Kingdom assist Vietnamese businesses in exporting unique and endemic products from tropical nations.

Second, with regard to items of animal origin, the Deputy Minister stated that the MARD will send the British side a list of questions on processed chicken products for consideration. Simultaneously, the Department of Animal Health will function as a hub and liaise with UK agencies to quickly reach an agreement on the content and open the market by regulations.

The Deputy Minister stated, "We are now interested in marketing processed pork, processed poultry, and poultry eggs of all varieties, milk, and dairy goods from Vietnam on the British market."

Animal health agencies of the two countries will promote the exchange of information on measures of disease prevention in cattle and poultry, particularly diagnostic and testing methods for animal diseases; conduct research and production of vaccines against diseases affecting cattle; and complete the UK Pork and Chicken Certificate template.

Thirdly, the Deputy Minister requested to continue addressing efforts relating to the conservation and sustainable management of marine biological resources and aquatic products; traceability of exploited goods; and combating illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing for aquatic products.

In addition, due to its scientific and technological ability, it is advocated that the United Kingdom collaborate in approaches, exchange experiences, and transfer technology to boost the industrialization of marine aquaculture and ecological farming in the direction of sustainable development, social security, environmental protection, adaptability to climate change, and effective guarantee of traceability.

"Vietnam expects British help on energy use efficiency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in fishing and farming," said the MARD head.

For wood products, the Deputy Minister proposed encouraging discussions for the two countries to establish a timber trade agreement equivalent to the VPA/FLEGT Agreement that Vietnam signed with the European Union.

In recent years, the wood industry's exports have steadily increased, reaching a record high of USD 15.8 billion in 2021. Consequently, Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien believed that the United Kingdom would collaborate to eliminate obstacles and simplify the operation of export firms of the two nations in accordance with their respective legal provisions.

Enhance collaboration across several areas

Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to the United Kingdom, Mr. Nguyen Hoang Long, reported that the United Kingdom was considering supporting Vietnam with projects on climate adaptation and sustainable agricultural development to achieve the COP26 goals.

To clarify this matter, Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien stated that Vietnam has consistently promoted restructuring towards sustainable development, improving quality, added value, and competitiveness; environmental protection, ecology; increasing income for rural residents; promoting the development of clean agriculture, organic agriculture, in conjunction with the development of the agricultural processing industry, and connecting the global agricultural product value chain.

The involvement of agricultural cooperatives, the private sector, and FDI businesses in agricultural production development investment and application of innovative science and technology is growing. The public-private partnership investment models are replicated. 

The Deputy Minister said, "Sustainable agricultural transformation plays a vital role in encouraging collaboration between member nations and the international community, particularly the United Kingdom."

In light of Vietnam's commitments at COP26, the Deputy Minister requested that the British Government assist Vietnam's "Sustainable agricultural transformation, response to climate change" project.

During the meeting with his British counterpart, Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien proposed cooperation and support from the United Kingdom in research, forecasting, and warning of natural disasters and extreme weather; sharing experiences, transferring advanced science and technology in production and processing; strengthening research cooperation on food security, nutrition security, and reducing food loss and waste; and sharing experiences, transferring advanced science and technology in production and processing.

Vietnam, as a developing nation, has an urgent need for financial assistance to innovate agricultural production technologies to minimize greenhouse gas emissions.

MARD believes that a structure for coordination and the exchange of information is important for the sustainable management of natural and water resources, including transboundary water resources and marine resource management.

Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien underlined that sustainable agricultural transformation will generate a driving force for the sustainable use of resources, food systems, and ecosystems.

After the meeting, MARD and DEFRA signed a collaboration memorandum.