Protecting Vietnamese agricultural product brands

Recently, authorities have discovered that foreign traders collect Vietnamese fruits, then dip them in chemicals and export them to China, Indonesia and some other countries. This has seriously affected the brand and reputation of Vietnamese agricultural products.

Multiple violations

Information that agricultural products such as bananas, jackfruit, durian, etc. have been soaked in chemicals to ripen them has caused public confusion in recent months. According to authorities, some foreign traders illegally purchase Vietnamese agricultural products, then soak them in chemicals for export. This not only harms the health of consumers but also damages the reputation of Vietnamese agricultural products.

According to regulations, foreign traders are not allowed to purchase Vietnamese agricultural products in the domestic market. In early December, Tien Giang Provincial Police discovered and handled 8 subjects of Thai nationality who illegally collected fruits in Cai Lay District (Tien Giang) to export to China. Notably, these subjects used chemicals brought from China to ripen and preserve the fruits. Previously, from January to July 2013, Tien Giang Provincial Police also discovered 3 cases of Chinese traders illegally purchasing durian, pineapple, and fresh squid. It is worth mentioning that there is information that many shipments of durian exported from our country were returned by Chinese partners because of poor quality and toxic substances.

However, Mr. Nguyen Xuan Hong, Director of the Plant Protection Department (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) said that up to now, the Department has not received any official notice about the return of durian shipments from our country to China. According to normal regulations, the return shipments must be clearly notified of the reasons.

Mr. Doan Xuan Hoa, Deputy Director of the Department of Processing and Trade of Agricultural, Forestry, Fisheries and Salt Products (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) said that China is a large market and is easy-going in terms of food hygiene and safety. Many agricultural products such as vegetables, fruits, and sugar are often exported through small-scale and border trade, making it difficult to control food safety.

In fact, after the authorities discovered the incident, durian consumption faced many difficulties, and the selling price dropped sharply, from 50,000 VND/kg to only about 30,000 - 35,000 VND/kg.

Not only stopping at fruits, previously, in O Mon district, Can Tho city, there were some Chinese traders illegally purchasing laying ducks from farmers in large quantities and at prices higher than the market. Then, they brought them to slaughterhouses for processing, packaging, transporting to Mong Cai and exporting to China.

Tighter control

According to the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association, the actions of some foreign traders not only affect the reputation of Vietnamese durian in the Chinese market but also affect the reputation of other exported fruits in the world market.

“When information about Vietnamese durian being ripened with chemicals appears, foreign partners may question our other fruits. That will greatly affect the reputation and brand of Vietnamese agricultural products,” said Mr. Huynh Quang Dau, Vice President of the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association.

The Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association believes that relevant ministries and sectors need to coordinate and direct localities to strictly control the activities of foreign traders, especially their smuggling and use of pesticides.

“Authorities need to clearly understand the motives and purposes of foreign traders' purchasing activities to better manage and inform the people,” Mr. Tran Cong Xuan, Chairman of the Vietnam Poultry Association suggested.

To thoroughly manage this situation, Mr. Doan Xuan Hoa said that Vietnam needs to build technical barriers to control agricultural products in the domestic and export markets. In addition, it is necessary to organize production and consumption well to avoid the situation of foreign traders illegally purchasing agricultural products and causing instability in the market.

According to News