China Approves 401 Additional Durian Growing Areas and 166 Packing Facilities in Vietnam

On August 20, as part of a working visit to China, a delegation from the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment of Vietnam, led by Vice Minister Nguyen Hoang Hiep, held a meeting with the General Administration of Customs of China (GACC), chaired by Deputy Commissioner Zhang Baofeng, in Dalian.

The meeting aimed to promote agricultural trade, address technical issues, and strengthen coordination mechanisms between the two sides.

More Export Opportunities for Vietnamese Durian to China

One of the positive outcomes of the visit was China’s approval of a large number of additional registration codes for Vietnamese agricultural growing areas and packing facilities, particularly for durian.

GACC has completed the assessment of 736 Vietnamese durian applications, comprising 487 growing areas and 249 packing facilities. Of these, 401 growing areas and 166 packing facilities met the requirements and were approved, representing 82.3% and 66.7%, respectively, of the applications assessed. A further 283 durian growing-area codes and 160 packing-facility codes are currently awaiting GACC’s review and response.

The approval of a significant number of additional growing areas and packing facilities will expand Vietnam’s capacity to supply durian through official export channels to China. It will also create favorable conditions for local authorities and businesses to organize production, procurement, packing, and exports, particularly as the durian industry enters the peak harvest season in Vietnam’s Central Highlands.

In addition to durian, China has also approved six additional registration codes for coconut and chili growing areas, as well as 70 registration codes for packing facilities handling other Vietnamese agricultural products.

At the meeting, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment highly appreciated GACC’s cooperation, particularly its efforts to expedite the assessment of a large number of durian applications and strengthen technical-level exchanges between the two sides.

Vietnam requested that GACC continue to accelerate the assessment process, particularly for products entering their main harvest and export seasons. Vietnam also proposed increasing the frequency at which lists and applications for approval are received, thereby shortening waiting times and better meeting seasonal requirements and the commercial needs of businesses in both countries.

GACC acknowledged the proposal for consideration but suggested maintaining the current three-month frequency, as it needs sufficient time to prepare human resources and other resources to review applications submitted by Vietnam.

Improving the Quality of Growing Areas and Packing Facilities to Increase Approval Rates

Alongside the positive results, this round of assessments also provided important information for Vietnam to further improve the quality of growing areas, packing facilities, and registration dossiers.

Among the durian applications assessed during this round, 86 growing areas and 83 packing facilities still need to address outstanding issues and complete necessary improvements before GACC can consider them at the next stage. The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment took note of GACC’s assessment and views these recommendations as an important basis for further standardizing the quality of growing areas and packing facilities and improving registration dossiers from the preparation stage in Vietnam. This will help increase the proportion of applications accepted by importing markets.

Accordingly, local authorities, growing-area owners, and packing facilities should pay particular attention to ensuring that applications are fully completed, accurately reflect actual conditions, and comply with the requirements of the importing country. Technical requirements must be implemented and maintained on a regular basis, rather than merely documented at the time of registration. In cases where corrective action is requested, the underlying causes should be properly reviewed, substantive corrective measures implemented, and sufficient evidence provided before resubmission.

Local authorities are required to strengthen corrective measures, conduct on-site inspections, and ensure that registration dossiers are completed in accordance with GACC’s requirements, thereby safeguarding the quality of growing areas and packing facilities submitted for approval.

Improving quality from the outset will not only help shorten the assessment process and increase approval rates, but also reduce compliance costs for businesses and regulatory authorities, while minimizing the risk of warnings or suspension of registration codes after approval.

Modernizing Registration-Code Management through Transparency, Traceability and Risk Management

At the meeting, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment briefed GACC on changes to Vietnam’s system for managing registration codes for growing areas and packing facilities under Resolution No. 36/2026/NQ-CP dated July 31, 2026.

Vietnam is moving toward a data-driven management approach based on traceability, risk classification, and the accountability of relevant stakeholders, while promoting end-to-end digitalization and centralized management of registration-code data. The agricultural traceability system is being further developed to gradually connect information from production areas and packing facilities to individual consignments and markets.

Vietnam emphasized that domestic administrative reforms will not reduce technical requirements applicable to growing areas and packing facilities exporting to China. All relevant stakeholders must continue to fully comply with the Protocol, technical requirements, and regulations of GACC. The objective of the reforms is to enhance transparency, traceability, stakeholder accountability, monitoring, and post-inspection effectiveness.

The implementation of the new system may result in a larger number of registration codes being submitted to GACC for approval. The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment therefore requested GACC’s continued cooperation and support in accelerating the approval of growing-area and packing-facility codes submitted by Vietnam, thereby facilitating bilateral agricultural trade between the two countries.

Strengthening Technical Cooperation to Facilitate Agricultural Trade

The two sides also discussed strengthening cooperation in technical standards and food safety testing.

Vietnam proposed that the two sides develop a roadmap toward mutual recognition of the capacity of testing laboratories, testing methods, and test results for agreed parameters, initially prioritizing agricultural products with high trade value. The two sides also agreed on the importance of enhancing exchanges on standards and plant quarantine methods in accordance with the laws of each country and international practices.

The two sides agreed in principle to maintain a mechanism for technical exchanges three times a year, either in person or online, while proactively communicating whenever urgent issues arise. This mechanism is expected to help both sides promptly update regulations, address non-compliance cases at an early stage, and minimize disruptions to trade.

Regarding the suspension of registration codes, Vietnam requested that GACC consider providing longer advance notice so that relevant stakeholders have sufficient time to adjust their harvesting, procurement, packing, and transportation plans.

GACC confirmed that the current practice of providing approximately 48 hours’ notice of export suspension after a GACC notification is uniformly applied to all countries, based on careful consideration of relevant factors. For the time being, GACC does not have sufficient grounds to change this timeframe.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment emphasized that expanding the number of registration codes must go hand in hand with improving the quality and transparency of each individual code. Every approved growing area and packing facility not only creates additional opportunities for farmers and businesses but also contributes to the overall reputation of Vietnam’s agricultural industries and products.

Therefore, while continuing discussions with GACC to accelerate the review of applications awaiting responses, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment called on local authorities to strengthen guidance, monitoring, and post-inspection; improve the quality of growing areas, packing facilities, and traceability systems; and promote transparent, compliant, and responsible production.

These efforts will provide a solid foundation for the stable and sustainable development of Vietnamese agricultural exports to China.