The protocol was just signed during Xi Jinping's visit, allowing Vietnamese watermelons to be officially exported to China.
The Plant Protection Department (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) said that the protocol on plant quarantine for fresh watermelon between the department and the General Administration of Customs of China was implemented within the framework of the state visit to Vietnam by General Secretary and President of China Xi Jinping.
This is an important step in promoting the official export of traditional agricultural products of Vietnam and standardizing regulations on agricultural exports between the two countries.
The Protocol requires Vietnam to comply with China's laws, regulations and standards related to food safety and hygiene as well as plant quarantine requirements, thereby creating a basis for Vietnamese production, packaging and export units to comply.
According to this decree, fresh watermelons from Vietnam must not be contaminated with five live plant quarantine species that China is concerned about. All growing areas and packaging facilities for watermelons exported to China must be registered and approved by both countries' authorities.
The orchard must apply good agricultural practices (GAP), and must ensure supervision of the orchard and the packaging process at the packing facility. The packing facility must establish a traceability system to ensure that fresh watermelons exported to China can be traced back to the coded growing area.
In addition, Vietnamese watermelon shipments will be allowed to pass through all Chinese border gates permitted by Chinese customs to import fruit and must undergo 2% plant quarantine sampling.
Currently, Vietnam has fruits and agricultural products exported under the protocol to China including mangosteen, black jelly, durian, banana, sweet potato, and watermelon.
For many years, Vietnam's watermelon exports to China have been mostly through unofficial channels, so they have always been in an unstable state. Since May 2018, China has strengthened its management and traceability of imported fruits, so watermelon exports to this market have always encountered difficulties.
However, from 2021 to now, Vietnam has improved the quality of agricultural products. Thanks to that, the products have traceable origin and are safe, and the export turnover of watermelons to China has grown strongly.
In the first 10 months of the year, Vietnam's watermelon export turnover to China reached 44 million USD, an increase of 162% over the same period last year. China is a favorite market for this product.
The watermelon harvest season here lasts from late April to September every year. From November to April of the following year, this country tends to increase watermelon imports, so this is considered an opportunity for Vietnam.
The Chinese people's demand for watermelon during the Lunar New Year also increases because according to their beliefs, watermelon is red, the color of luck. Melons weighing about 3-4 kg each are popular because they are easy to preserve.
Thi Ha
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