China presses RP on rules governing importation of fresh Chinese vegetables

China is pressing the Philippines to come up with a protocol on quarantine procedures to facilitate the entry of fresh Chinese vegetables to the Philippine market.

China’s request was made during the recently-concluded Philippines-China 24th Joint Trade Committee (JTC) meeting in Manila, which tackled several areas of mutual interest.

On China’s vegetable exports that need to undergo inspection and quarantine clearance procedures, the Philippine Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) informed the Chinese delegation that it had already completed the requisite series of consultations.

BPI, an attached agency of the Department of Agriculture, added that indicative timelines for succeeding activities would be subsequently communicated to China through official channels.

The agency reported that it cannot conduct simultaneous pest risk analysis (PRAs) due to limited resources, and prioritization would accordingly depend on China’s preferences.

During the meeting, there was also an exchange of views on the Early Harvest Program (EHP) under the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement.

Along this line, Trade Undersecretary Thomas Aquino urged a review and better understanding of each country’s practice in reporting trade statistics.

Aquino was the leader of the Philippine delegation while China’s Commerce Vice Minister An Min led the Chinese delegation.

Representatives from the departments of agriculture, trade, investment, foreign affairs, economic, social, and project development, local government, environment, customs, energy, mining, railways, and infrastructure also attended the two-day meeting.

The JTC Meeting, which aims to foster closer bilateral trade and economic relations through stronger partnerships and cooperation in a range of areas of mutual interest, enabled productive discussions toward clarification and resolution of outstanding issues.

It also provides a venue for firming up cooperation initiatives.

The meeting covered a wide range of topics in pursuit of enhanced bilateral trade and investment relations as well as economic cooperation.

The scope of the 24th JTC meeting was broadened to include economic cooperation in mining and infrastructure, for which new working groups were created to advance economic relations.

The meeting essentially took off from the collaborative schemes and initiatives signed during the visit to the Philippines of Chinese President Hu Jintao last April.