Vietnam and the USA have the same aim on agro-product market opening

Counselor Ralph Bean highly appreciated the relationship between the Ministry of Agriculture of the two countries and congratulated Vietnam on the creation of the ASF vaccine. “I am delighted to have played a part in this process and that achievement will help many pig farmers around the world, not just in Vietnam,” he said.

Regarding the approval of genetically modified products as well as the application of biotechnology, the USA’s representative expressed his gratitude as Vietnam has approved many applications and also his wish to have the remaining four applications approved in the near future.

Particularly in the matter of market opening, Ralph Bean congratulated Vietnam on bringing pomelo to the US market and also hoped that pomelos from the USA would soon be available in Vietnam. “I love eating Vietnamese pomelo. Eating this fruit reminds me of Tet,” said the Agricultural Counselor.

On the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien highly regarded the two countries’ cooperation in the agricultural field. To be more specific, the USA is the largest export market of Vietnam's agro-products with rapid growth, from USD 6.78 billion in 2017 to USD 10.76 billion in 2020 and USD 13.16 billion in 2021.

But the Deputy Minister also said that FDI investment of the USA in Vietnam's agricultural sector was still in quite modest figures and he hoped to see more positive signals in the coming period.

Regarding the issue of market opening, apart from the USA’s strong livestock products such as poultry, beef and pork, Vietnam has also allowed the USA to export 171 types of plant seeds, 1 fresh tuber (potato), 12 types of grasses and grass seeds, grass cuttings, sorghum seeds, and 7 types of fresh fruit.

According to the Deputy Minister, Vietnam has submitted two more dossiers for passion fruit and coconut. He expressed his wish that the USA would speed up the progress and help Vietnam in the process of completing market access procedures for these fruits.

Aside from the mentioned matters, Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien also reiterated a number of cases that both sides need to resolve soon, such as continuing to reduce tax on Vietnamese honey after the anti-dumping investigation or the support of the USA side so that Vietnam can take measures against IUU fishing and better the law enforcement at sea.

The leader of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam also noted the implementation of the Agreement between Vietnam and the USA on the control of illegal logging and trade (Agreement 301) and proposed the USA side support financial and technical resources through specific initiatives and actions so that Vietnam can strengthen its capacity and successfully implement global initiatives, contributing to the implementation of Vietnam's commitments at COP27.

As this will be the first time Counselor Ralph Bean experiences Vietnam's traditional Tet holiday, Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien said that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development would give him pomelo, chung cake and spring rolls – the signature food of Vietnam's Tet holiday, as presents.