Viet Nam is expected to further export rice to China. — Photo baodautu.vn

HCM CITY (Biz Hub) — A revised protocol on plant quarantine for Viet Nam's rice and rice bran sold to China is expected to further facilitate Vietnamese exports to the country.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Tran Thanh Nam made this statement on Tuesday during a conference to announce the protocol which was signed by the Vietnamese ministry and the Chinese General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine on May 30, 2016.

Hoang Trung, head of the ministry's Plant Protection Department, said that the newly issued document is to amend and supplement the protocol signed on October 7, 2004.

Under the old document, before being exported to China, Vietnamese rice had to be sterilised by a State-owned agency. At that time, the Viet Nam Fumigation Joint Stock Company (VFC) under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development was assigned for the task.

However, over the past few years, VFC was no longer owned by the State, Trung said, and added that this was the reason why China asked for an amendment to the protocol.

"During the time when clauses of the protocol were reviewed, VFC was still allowed to conduct fumigation works but under the supervision of the China Inspection Company (CIC). This was a very time-consuming and costly process which created difficulties for rice exporters."

The new document's requirement, that rice sterilisation will be monitored by the MARD's Plant Protection Department instead of the Chinese company, has helped deal with the problems, Trung said.

The department has asked nine rice sterilisation units and the Viet Nam Food Association (VFA) to submit a list of qualified rice exporters to the MARD, which will later be sent to China for approval and recognition.

If any violations are found, China was required to contact the Vietnamese Government to seek out solutions, he said.

The Chinese side also planned to make fact-finding trips for rice paddy, processing factories and warehouses in Viet Nam.

VFA Secretary General Huynh Minh Hue said nearly 131 firms are currently qualified to export rice to China, of which 30 to 40 are regular suppliers, and added that the protocol will facilitate exports to China.

Pham Thai Binh, general director of the Trung An Company based in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho, said the signing of the protocol will help tackle difficulties of rice exporters.

"Previously, the inspection was conducted by the CIC in China. If the rice quality does not meet China's demand, the supplier will have to pay more for storage and rice will pile up at the border gates," Binh said.

Sooner or later, rice exporters must meet requirements of quarantine and inspection, especially in the context of increasing integration. This is the demand of not only the Chinese markets, but also of other countries, he said.

Other rice companies also hailed the protocol signing as a big progress that creates favourable conditions for enterprises and ensures transparency in rice trading and exporting to the market.

According to the rice exporters, this was also an important step to raise the awareness of enterprises and responsibilities of quarantine from the sowing to the processing stage.

Pham Thanh Tho, deputy head of the food division under the Loc Troi Group in southern An Giang Province, said that rice suppliers should raise the prestige of Vietnamese rice by taking responsibility for the products until they are in the consumer's hands.

Tho said the cost of rice and rice bran sterilisation and fumigation before exporting accounts for a small part in export costs, at an average at US$25 per tonne.

Le Van Banh, head of the MARD's Department of Agro-Fisheries Processing and Salt Production, urged rice companies to strictly comply with requirements stated in the protocol.

If any violation is found, it will have a negative effect on not only one company but also on the entire rice industry, he said.

China is currently Viet Nam's largest rice importer with over 30 per cent market share.

400,000 tonnes

Rice exports are estimated to reach about 400,000 tonnes for May, a year-on-year reduction of over 31 per cent, and this is the lowest ratio since the beginning of this year, the Viet Nam Food Association (VFA) reported.

VFA Secretary General Hue said rice export orders in April and May both dropped compared with previous average levels due to downward trends in both orders from China and the rice export price.

He revealed that prices of Viet Nam's export rice in late April were higher than other suppliers, including Thailand, but then plummeted in May.

Rice exports in the second quarter of 2015 were 1.8 million tonnes. The target for the second quarter of this year is also set at the same level. However, the sector might have to adjust for the third time from 1.5 million tonnes to 1.3 million tonnes, Hue said.

The sector previously reduced the target from the initial 1.8 million tonnes to 1.6 million tonnes, and then from 1.6 million tonnes to 1.5 million tonnes.

In early April, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development was assigned to closely monitor rice production and exports.

The move was intended to ensure domestic food security and effectively manage export activities, given that prolonged and serious drought and saline intrusion were hitting major granaries in the country, particularly in the Mekong Delta.

Despite some difficulties, the VFA still anticipates that exports of rice in the coming months will probably rise again due to more orders from other countries in the Southeast Asian region.

If one compares the demand volume in contracts signed and the amount of stockpiled rice, there is a supply shortage of 100,000 tonnes. However, this will be compensated by the impending summer-autumn harvest, Hue said.

In 2015, Viet Nam earned $2.68 billion from rice exports. Asian countries were the main buyers, accounting for 74.5 per cent, followed by Africa (13.77 per cent) and the United States (6.72 per cent). — VNS