The Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency (APQA) of South Korea officially announced regulations for importing fresh pomelos from Viet Nam from July 30 on its website.

The permit marks a significant milestone and opening up great opportunities for Vietnamese agricultural products to access international markets.

This approval helps affirm the quality and reputation of Vietnamese farm produce in the global market.

Since 2018, the department initiated a program to promote the export of pomelos to South Korea.

Following active coordination and information exchange to facilitate the pest risk analysis process, and going through multiple rounds of negotiations, the PPD and the APQA reached a technical agreement in a bilateral meeting in April 2024.

Under Korean regulations, fresh pomelo growing areas must register annually with the department. The agency will manage and supervise these areas to ensure that the pest species of concern to South Korea are kept at low density levels through pest monitoring and control activities.

Packaging facilities that sort and pack fresh pomelos for export to South Korea must also register annually with the department and undergo regular cleaning and inspections.

The list of registered pomelo cultivation regions, export packing facilities, and vapour heat treatment facilities must be submitted to the APQA before the annual export of fresh pomelos begins.

Businesses freely access more detailed information on the APQA website at https://www.qia.go.kr or the unofficial Vietnamese translation available on the PPD’s website at https://www.ppd.gov.vn.

Viet Nam is home to 105,400 hectares of fresh pomelo cultivation with a total output of nearly 905,000 tons.

So far, Viet Nam’s fresh pomelos have been exported to 13 foreign countries and territories./.