Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Lê Minh Hoan speaks at the event. — Photo vneconomy.vn

HÀ NỘI — Technical barriers, support to promote export markets and attracting green investment were the main discussion topics at a working session on May 13 organised by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development with the participation of 12 agricultural counsellors from various countries and national groups.

Nguyễn Hoài Nam, Deputy Secretary General of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), affirmed that promoting export trade was a top priority to boost the domestic market. In recent times, VASEP has made many efforts to increase trade with businesses in other countries by improving co-operation and trade connections between the two sides.

According to Nam, in recent times, Việt Nam in general and the seafood industry business community in particular have made great efforts in building quality management teams to meet market requirements. Việt Nam’s export products are present in more than 160 countries and territories worldwide.

“The fact that we maintain regular export activities into very demanding markets such as the EU or the United States proves the quality of Vietnamese seafood. We do what is necessary to obtain sustainability and environmental responsibility certifications from markets,” said the VASEP representative.

“However, many markets are currently concerned about controlling antibiotic use in aquaculture. Therefore, Việt Nam’s seafood business community calls for technical support from countries in addition to the requirements set out by partners,” stressed Nam.

Nam cited that Việt Nam has imported a lot of tuna from New Zealand. Recently, Việt Nam has made great efforts to meet New Zealand's new requirements. However, New Zealand has a separate agreement with the EU on food safety. This causes Vietnamese seafood businesses to have problems with Health Certificates, so Việt Nam needs additional support from New Zealand to be able to discuss with the EU and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development so that these product lines no longer have problems related to regulations.

“Timely technical support will greatly support seafood trade issues,” stressed Nam.

Regarding the issue of removing the IUU "yellow card", Nam said that the Government, ministries, and business community have made great efforts in this, and look forward to the EU's recognition.

Regarding the coffee industry, a representative of the Vietnam Coffee and Cocoa Association said that the Regulation on Deforestation Free Products (EUDR) caused difficulties for Vietnamese coffee export businesses, in the context of strongly fluctuating coffee prices. The association proposed to provide guidance and support to create favourable conditions for exporting coffee to the EU market.

Meanwhile, with the wood industry, Vice President and General Secretary of the Vietnam Wood and Forest Products Association Ngô Sỹ Hoài said that Việt Nam's wood processing and wood export industry has many advantages. Accordingly, along with highly skilled labour, Việt Nam uses legally imported wood and an abundant supply of domestically grown wood to produce traceable products.

On the other hand, Vietnamese product designs are also integrated, meeting the needs of the world. Therefore, Hoài said, the wood industry community wants and is ready to cooperate with partners to expand the market for this product line.

According to Director of the Department of International Cooperation under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyễn Đỗ Anh Tuấn, Việt Nam's agricultural industry recorded export turnover of more than US$53 million in 2023. Việt Nam also is a large exporter of agricultural, forestry and fishery products with steady growth. With the export scale doubling over the past 10 years, in the coming time, Việt Nam will promote agricultural exports in many markets around the world.

Speaking at the event, Agricultural Attaché of the Brazilian Embassy Juliano Vieira said that Brazil shared common difficulties with Việt Nam in the context of a growing population, changing habits, and changing consumer needs.

“Therefore, Việt Nam and Brazil can share solutions to overcome challenges together. We do not copy solutions but find directions suitable to the characteristics of each country to reduce emissions, reaching the goal of net zero emissions in the near future,” said Vieira.

Vieira suggested that countries cannot alone find solutions for sustainable development but need to support and co-operate with each other.

“No matter what industry, what field, or what country, today the common denominator for all is green, sustainable growth with requirements such as food safety, traceability and geographical indications,” said Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Lê Minh Hoan at the event.

Hoan also suggested prioritising the development of smallholder farmers, especially in countries with similar conditions to Việt Nam.

“Việt Nam needs technical advice and resource support from other countries to realise the potential and opportunities for agricultural co-operation in the coming time,” added Hoan. — VNS