On July 15, Cambodian Agriculture Minister 邓迪那 and China’s customs chief 孙梅君 held bilateral working talks and jointly signed a protocol on sanitary and phytosanitary requirements for Cambodian jackfruit exports to China (SPS). The signing marked the opening of an export pathway and laid the foundation for lawful, compliant access to the Chinese market.
The relevant departments of the two countries also signed a memorandum of understanding on animal and plant quarantine and safe food imports and exports (MoU), aimed at deepening cooperation on agricultural import and export quarantine supervision and food safety controls, improving bilateral agricultural trade cooperation and expanding its scale and quality.
邓迪那 said bilateral agricultural and trade cooperation had progressed steadily in recent years. He said the two sides were advancing supporting work, including registration of export enterprises and alignment of sanitary and phytosanitary standards, to keep export channels open and help more distinctive Cambodian agricultural products reach China.
Under the provisions described in the protocol, Cambodian jackfruit exported to China must comply strictly with Chinese import requirements throughout cultivation, harvesting and grading, processing, packaging, storage and transport. Sanitary and phytosanitary measures must be applied throughout to safeguard quality and safety and meet Chinese agricultural import inspection and quarantine standards.
A Cambodian Agriculture Ministry official said sanitary and phytosanitary protocols were a key technical basis and compliance prerequisite for agricultural products seeking access to international markets. The signing of the two documents provided legal support and technical standards for Cambodian jackfruit exports to China, helped address market-access barriers and would broaden bilateral agricultural trade cooperation and create opportunities for more Cambodian products.
