Egyptian fresh produce has a promising future in China, according to Iman Kamel, executive director of Egypt’s Horticultural Export Improvement Association (HEIA), who expressed hope that direct access to the market could be achieved next year.
A Chinese delegation from AQSIQ (the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine) is expected to visit Egypt next April, according to FreshPlaza, to conduct a risk analysis on the country’s grapes.
Kamel stressed the importance of Egypt’s Sokhna Port on the Red Sea, which receives 11 shipping lines from East Asia and a daily average of four ships, which frequently return east with significant storage space available.
In May 2015, HEIA and AEC (Egypt’s Agricultural Export Council) signed a Memorandum of Understanding with China’s Agricultural Wholesale Markets Association (CAWA) to promote Egyptian produce in China.
Kamel commented: “This MOU has paved the ground for Egyptian exporters and Chinese importers to promote Egyptian fresh produce to the Chinese market and is playing a positive role in coordinating the government and the industry in the formulation of trade policies, also allowing MOU parties to exchange information regarding marketing opportunities, product availability, registered players, regulations awareness, technical information and other bilateral information needed.”
