At the conference to disseminate regulations on exporting frozen durian to the Chinese market on the morning of September 19, Mr. Nguyen Quang Hieu - Deputy Director of the Plant Protection Department (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development), said that each year China imports fresh durian worth 7 billion USD and this figure is expected to exceed 10 billion USD in the next few years.
China also imported $1 billion worth of frozen durian, a figure that is expected to increase rapidly in the coming years.
According to Mr. Hieu, our country has been able to export fresh durian to China since mid-2022. In mid-August, Vietnam and China signed a protocol to export frozen durian to this market of more than 1.4 billion people.
Fresh durian is only 30% flesh, 70% seeds and the shell must be discarded, causing environmental pollution. He believes that consumers in China will soon switch to frozen durian products because they are more suitable for modern life.
In addition, frozen durian has a long shelf life and can be used immediately or as an ingredient for other products, Mr. Hieu emphasized. Accordingly, this will be an extremely potential market for frozen durian products from Vietnam in the near future.
However, the leader of the Plant Protection Department also pointed out that the durian industry is facing many difficulties. For example, farmers and businesses in our country have to face the fact that China is testing the cultivation of 2,700 hectares of durian in the south of Hainan Island. The situation that some Vietnamese businesses are not aware of complying with the Protocol signed between the two countries has caused many technical violations to occur in recent times.
“If we do not rectify and raise awareness of compliance with regulations, China will take action. This is unfortunate, because just a few businesses violate the law, the whole industry will be affected,” Mr. Hieu pointed out.
In addition, Mr. Hieu also noted that frozen durian is considered “food”. Therefore, this item will have to comply with Order 248 of the Chinese Customs. Enterprises wishing to export must register and be approved by the Chinese side. At the same time, enterprises need to have a food safety management system (FSM) that is assessed by the Chinese customs agency according to 13 criteria and recognized as equivalent to the standards of this country.
China has very clear and strict regulations to ensure imported products are safe for domestic consumers. Therefore, businesses must submit complete documents and meet all criteria to more easily export food to the market of 1.4 billion people, emphasized Huynh Tan Dat, Director of the Plant Protection Department.
Accordingly, the Vietnamese side will inspect facilities producing, processing, and preserving frozen durian exported to China. Enterprises that meet food safety requirements will be introduced to the Chinese side.
However, to export goods to China, raw materials must come from durian gardens registered with China. Our country will manage and supervise the gardens that provide raw materials for frozen durian exported to China and minimize the use of agricultural inputs.
Mr. Huynh Tan Dat commented that with the recently signed protocol, current capacity and demand of the Chinese market, it is forecasted that Vietnam's frozen durian export turnover in 2024 could reach 300 million USD if the registration for businesses to export is completed soon.
However, the Director of the Plant Protection Department requested that exporting enterprises, packaging facilities, and frozen durian processing facilities must carefully study China's regulations and strictly comply with the requirements of the Protocol and regulations of this country. It is necessary to proactively build real chains from growing areas to packaging facilities and exporting enterprises, and build a traceability system to ensure traceability when required.
In addition, it is necessary to focus on building brands for Vietnamese durian and frozen durian products, investing in upgrading freezing technology, techniques and product quality to meet international standards.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Plant Protection Department will direct specialized departments and offices to coordinate with localities, businesses, and packaging facilities to effectively implement the regulations of the Frozen Durian Protocol in the coming time, Mr. Dat said.
Statistics from the General Department of Customs show that in the first 7 months of 2024, our country's durian exports reached more than 1.6 billion USD, an increase of 50% over the same period in 2023. The Chinese market leads with a turnover of 1.47 billion USD, up nearly 53%. Thailand ranks second, spending 65 million USD on Vietnamese durian, up 51% over the same period last year. Durian exports to South Korea, Papua New Guinea, Japan and Cambodia also increased sharply from 50% to tens of thousands of percent. |
Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/trung-quoc-se-chi-10-ty-usd-mua-sau-rieng-nhieu-canh-bao-voi-hang-viet-2323833.html
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