VietNamNet Bridge – While Chinese fruit can easily pass through border gates’ quarantine checkpoints, European farm imports face stricter requirements.

Reports about a Chinese-sourced apple which did not spoil after months have become a hot topic. The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Cao Duc Phat, in responding to the public’s concern, said that some varieties of apples and pears can be preserved for a long time, especially if they are treated with preservatives.

However, he conceded that consumers had every reason to worry about toxic chemicals used on the apples. Many Chinese products, including children’s toys, clothes and fruits have been found containing toxic substances.

Phat said he had instructed agencies to test the apples and take serious measures to tighten control over fruit imports. The aim is to ensure that all farm produce, including fruits, satisfy the country’s food hygiene standards.

However, Vietnamese consumers lack trust in the state management agencies’ promise that all necessary measures will be taken to prevent toxic products from penetrating the domestic market.

The results of the test on the apples from China remain unclear. The only information released by Tran Quang Trung, head of the Food Hygiene Agency, was that it “had finished the analysis and reported to Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam for further instructions”.

Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Kim Tien said during a business trip to the northern border province of Lang Son in early September that 15 fruit samples sold in the province and other localities were taken for testing, but results have not been made public.

While Vietnam has loosened control over toxic and low-quality imports from China, it has been more demanding on imports from other sources, including Europe.

French apples and beef, for instance, still have not been granted a “passport” to enter Vietnam.

Hoang Trung, deputy head of the Plant Protection Agency, said all export countries must follow necessary procedures to obtain approval from Vietnamese management agencies to enter the Vietnamese market.

The exporters need to prove that their products are safe and free from disease to be able to get the “go-ahead” license.

“We treat products from other countries the same way they treat our products,” Trung said.

Vietnamese dragonfruit, for example, was approved to enter the US market nine years after Vietnam submitted necessary documents to US agencies. But it took only four years for dragonfruit to enter the Japanese market, and three years for South Korea.

Tien Phong