Viet Nam has negotiated with China for the latter to import Vietnamese pork under large commercial contracts, Tran Thanh Nam, deputy minister of agriculture and rural development, said on Monday.

At present, China continues its ban on Vietnamese pork, which began in 2012, under large commercial contracts due to cases of the foot-and-mouth disease in Viet Nam, he said.

Viet Nam has been preparing all the relevant documents to complete the dossier to be sent to China. In turn, China will consider lifting the ban on the import of Vietnamese pork, opening the door for the produce to China, Vietnam News Agency reported.

Nguyen Tuan Viet, director of VIETGO Co Ltd, a company specialising in import and export consultancy for local enterprises, said China is a large market, with demand for 51-57 million tonnes of pork per year. At present, this market has inadequate pork because the country has converted from small-scale breeding of pigs to large-scale farms to breed pigs. This structure needs time to settle; therefore China has a shortage of five million tonnes of pork per year.

If Viet Nam gets a licence to export pork to China, it will be a great opportunity for local pig breeding farmers and enterprises, he said.

According to information on VIETGO’s website, two companies from Ukraine and Russia are seeking Vietnamese partners to import pork from Viet Nam to these countries and the European market.

This came as good news for farmers and provide more export opportunities for local pig breeding enterprises and farmers following difficulties in selling pork due to the significant price reduction, Viet said.

The Ukrainian company has sent a letter to VIETGO to find a pork supplier from Viet Nam for the European market, he said.

This company needs to import boneless parts of pig meat, including shoulder, picnic, ham and loin, as well as belly and tenderloin. However, the pork must meet European standards or have a certificate permitting export to a European country. — VNS