Lawrence MacAulay, Canadian Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, introduces a fresh apple with the symbol of Canada's red maple leaf, which represents high-quality food produce. Fresh apples are one of Canada's key export products to Việt Nam. — VNS Photo Khánh Dương

HÀ NỘI — Many Canadians enjoy a wide variety of Vietnamese food. While here in Việt Nam, we are seeing more and more Canadian food in your supermarkets, restaurants, retail and online.

Lawrence MacAulay, Canadian Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, made the statement at a meeting with local media during his visit to Việt Nam this week to promote Việt Nam-Canada’s agricultural cooperation.

“Canada's red maple leaf stands for quality and I'm proud to promote our Canadian products under the refreshed Canadian brand,” he said.

He said during his stay in Việt Nam, he met some of the key Vietnamese customers and distributors.

“I had a great meeting with Minister [Lê Minh Hoan] of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Together, we explored ways to grow our trade and expertise in food and agriculture products,” he said.

He said the trading relationship between the two countries in agriculture continues to grow.

"Canada imports a lot of products from Việt Nam. Việt Nam also exports a lot of products to Canada, a lot of nuts and coffee, beans. In fact, the balance of trade is very much in the Vietnamese favour," he said.

As Việt Nam’s economy continues to grow, Canadian stakeholders will have more opportunities to export more complex products, such as agri-food crop rotation technology and sophisticated fertiliser innovations, he said.

The entry into force of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for a Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) has complemented our trading relationship by eliminating barriers to trade and providing more opportunities for Canadian and Vietnamese agriculture, agri-food, and seafood stakeholders, he said.

“What you need to do on exports is to make sure that you have an appropriate inspection agency. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is working with Vietnamese agencies to make sure that the quality of food in Việt Nam is upgraded and that it’s ready to be exported around the world.”

“We are more than pleased to help Việt Nam establish a food inspection agency that is exceptional worldwide because everybody wants to be sure that the food that they eat is top quality.”

Regarding Việt Nam News’ question on Canada’s support to improve food safety and food security in Việt Nam, he said Canada had CFIA, which is well recognised worldwide. "We have some expertise that we're sharing with you.”

Vietnamese counterparts had a long and successful relationship. This collaboration included the delivery of technical assistance activities and information sharing, and which had led to an improved mutual understanding of sanitary regulations and trade facilitation, he said.

Canada’s Indo-Pacific strategy

Emphasising that the Indo Pacific is an important area for Canada, the minister said: “We have decided that we're going to put a strong emphasis on this part of the world, and we want to be involved here.”

“We're open to cooperating, no matter in environment, food inspection agency, any sectors that we can help you with. We’ve also committed to opening our first Agriculture and Agri-Food Office in Manila, Philippines, that is focused on the Indo-Pacific region as a whole,” he said.

The office would work to strengthen partnerships, advance technical cooperation, promote agricultural trade opportunities and deepen economic ties, the minister told the press.

He added that Canada would be ready to cooperate with Việt Nam in the development of low-emission agricultural production.

“Canada is one of the leading countries in the environmental area and agriculture. Canadian farmers are very environmentally conscious. There are many practices that we're doing in our country that we will be sharing with your country in order to make sure that we lower emissions.” — VNS

Việt Nam and Canada share potential in agricultural cooperationHÀ NỘI — In 2022, beef and beef products were Canada’s largest exports to Việt Nam, valued at CA$129.9 million, accounting for 31.2 per cent of Canada’s total agriculture and food exports to Việt Nam.Other key exports from Canada to Việt Nam in 2022 were soybean (CA$76.2 million, 18.3 per cent share); brewing/distilling waste (CA$18.9 million, 4.5 per cent share); pork and pork products (CA$16.8 million, 4.0 per cent share) and fresh apples (CA$14.2 million, 3.4 per cent share).In 2022, the value of Canada’s agri-food and seafood imports from Việt Nam was CA$879.2 million, representing 1.3 per cent of Canada’s global agriculture and food imports. — VNS