Peru has signed a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with China in a move which the South American nation claimed will give the country an important opportunity to strengthen its export trade with the region, particularly during the global financial crisis.
“The FTA will open up opportunities of which Peru must take advantage,” José Luis Silva, chairman of ADEX (the Peruvian Exporters’ Association), said in a press release. “So, now more than ever we must strengthen the institutions which support our agriculture sector.”
To that end, Mr Silva stressed the importance of raising awareness of less-well-known products on offer from Peru as well as promoting the country’s competitiveness.
The agriculture sector especially has great potential to expand presence in the Asian region, ADEX said, which is why the country’s National Agriculture Food Safety Service (SENASA), the agency responsible for lifting phytosanitary barriers for Peruvian products, must be reinforced.
The deal marks particular importance for Peruvian fresh produce suppliers, according to Beatriz Tubino, agriculture manager at ADEX, who said the FTA will help to lift phytosanitary restrictions which currently impede access.
Already, ADEX said the green light has been given for mandarins, tangerines, grapefruit, orange, Sutil limes and Tahiti limes. With that in mind, Senasa and ProCitrus, Peru’s Citrus Growers’ Association, are gearing up to coordinate the first shipments.
Negotiations are also underway to open up the Chinese market to Peruvian asparagus and Hass avocados.
Senasa, together with the Peruvian Asparagus and Vegetable Institute (IPEH), is currently working with the Peruvian Embassy in China to analyse the pest risk for Peruvian asparagus exports in an effort to overcome trade restrictions.
Meanwhile, ProHass, Peru’s Hass Avocado Producers’ Association, has already supplied Chinese authorities with information about production zones and pest risks. The group now plans to visit China later this year.
There are currently 432 agro-export groups which have untapped potential to supply China, according to ADEX, for product such as fresh mandarins, mangoes, melons, watermelons, bananas and nuts, among other items.
Under the FTA, tariffs on goods moving between the two countries will be gradually reduced and, eventually, the duties on most products will be scrapped altogether.
