Head of the Mong Cai International Border Gate Management Board Luong Quang So noted that authorities from Dongxing, a county-level city in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of China had agreed to resume providing customs clearance for dragon fruits from Vietnam exported to China via the Bac Luan II Bridge and the Km 3+4 Hai Yen Open Trail on Sep. 22.

By Sep. 23, all dragon fruits from Vietnam had been exported to China via the Mong Cai International Border Gate.

On Sep. 22, all 24 fruit container trucks stuck at the Mong Cai International Border Gate area received customs clearance, each carried 20 tons of dragon fruits. On Sep. 23, 10 other fruit trucks were approved to pass through the border gate, bringing mangoes and jackfruits to China.

To ensure Covid prevention in fruit export and import via its border gates, Mong Cai City has been screening for Covid by applying real-time PCR test on goods and vehicles from the Covid hotspots to the Bac Luan II Bridge and the Km 3+4 Hai Yen Open Trail of Mong Cai International Border Gate.

Authorities of Dongxing city in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of China has resumed providing customs clearance for dragon fruits from Vietnam. Photo: Ministry of Industry and Trade

Border authorities take samples at frequently touched surfaces such as vehicle’s door handles and steering wheels, inner walls of containers and package surfaces.

From Sep. 15 - 21, authorities from Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region’s Dongxing city stopped providing customs clearance for dragon fruits from Vietnam exported to China via the Bac Luan II Bridge and the Km 3+4 Hai Yen Open Trail, upon detecting Sar-CoV-2 on dragon fruit packages and carton boxes.

On Sep. 22, dragon fruit export through Mong Cai was resumed.

In an interview with Lao Dong Newspapers, Head of the Plant Protection Department under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development Hoang Trung noted that there had not been any scientific evidence to prove that people could catch SARS-CoV-2 from goods, vehicles or food packaging.

Trung added that Vietnam had exported over 1.7 million tons of dragon fruits by September 2021. Previously, Vietnam’s total export of dragon fruits in 2020 reached 1.92 million tons.

Vietnam had exported over 1.7 million tons of dragon fruits by September 2021. Previously, Vietnam’s total export of dragon fruits in 2020 reached 1.92 million tons. Photo: VnEconomy

Head of the Mong Cai International Border Gate Management Board noted that Dongxi authorities would continue to stop providing custom clearances for one more week if SAR-CoV-2 viruses were detected on dragon fruits or other goods and for 4 weeks if the Covid test returned positive results 3 times.

The Management Board of Mong Cai International Border Gate cautioned businesses to be proactive in carrying out Covid prevention measures and monitoring the safety of food from processing to packaging.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade also requested dragon fruit export businesses to actively monitor, update and exchange information with their Chinese partners to change destination for receiving goods as necessary and suitable.

The ministry recommended other provinces and businesses to take lessons learned from Bac Giang province in harvesting, packaging, processing and transporting agricultural products, especially fruits, to boost consumption amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.

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