Mr. Chon's company has established a commercial relationship with a Chinese partner through a fully approved sales contract, accompanied by an import license issued by the Chinese Customs and Quarantine Authority.

Based on compliance with international quarantine regulations, Mr. Chon's company sent a dispatch to the Regional Veterinary Department to request guidance on the quarantine and quarantine process for exported crocodiles. However, according to the response of the Regional Veterinary Department, 100% of the exported crocodiles must be tested before quarantine can be carried out.

Testing 100% of the crocodiles will incur a very large cost, about 300,000 VND/crocodile, causing the company to suffer serious losses. This not only affects the economic efficiency of the enterprise but also negatively impacts the competitiveness of Vietnamese export goods in the international market.

Through studying international quarantine regulations and trade practices, Mr. Chon proposed that the competent authority consider allowing the application of the method of sampling and testing the total number of exported crocodiles at a frequency instead of 100% as currently required.

The frequency testing plan not only meets the requirements of the importing country but is also consistent with international practices in animal quarantine, ensuring both disease safety and creating favorable conditions for export activities.

The Department of Animal Health, Ministry of Agriculture and Environment responded to this issue as follows:

The Protocol on quarantine and health requirements for farmed monkeys and farmed crocodiles exported from Vietnam to China (the Protocols) was signed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam and the General Administration of Customs of China and took effect from June 6, 2024 (for farmed monkeys) and August 19, 2024 (for crocodiles).

Regarding business registration, according to the provisions of the Protocols, the General Administration of Customs of China does not require businesses exporting farmed monkeys and farmed crocodiles to register their businesses, and the General Administration of Customs of China does not issue export codes to businesses.

However, in order to serve the management work and have a basis to guide enterprises, and at the same time to have information and documents to send to the General Department of Customs of China when requested, the Department of Animal Health requests that enterprises in need send documents to the Department of Animal Health to register for export, along with a brief description of the enterprise, scale of the livestock farm, livestock processes, animal care, barn hygiene, etc., and relevant certificates and licenses such as the License of the CITES Management Authority of Vietnam, Business Registration Certificate, etc.

Regarding disease surveillance, based on the requests of enterprises, the Department of Animal Health will direct the Regional Animal Health Sub-Departments to make plans and coordinate with enterprises to conduct disease surveillance at farms registered for export according to the provisions of the Protocol.

The Regional Animal Health Sub-Departments shall conduct surveillance, take samples, and test for diseases according to the provisions of the Protocols and the Department of Animal Health's official dispatch guiding disease surveillance.

Regarding export quarantine registration, according to the provisions of the Protocol, export quarantine in Vietnam can only be carried out when the importing partner enterprise has obtained an import license from the General Administration of Customs of China.

Therefore, the Department of Animal Health recommends that enterprises proactively coordinate with their importing partners to contact the General Administration of Customs of China to apply for an import license.

After the importing partner has an import license issued by the General Administration of Customs of China, Vietnamese enterprises need to contact the Regional Animal Health Sub-Department in charge of the area to be guided on the implementation of inspection and quarantine procedures according to Vietnamese regulations and the regulations stated in the Protocol.

The order and procedures for registering for export quarantine are stipulated in Circular No. 25/2016/TT-BNNPTNT dated June 30, 2016 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development.

According to the provisions of the Protocol, the Regional Veterinary Department will inspect and monitor animals in the quarantine area, take samples of 100% of animals registered for export and test:

05 diseases for farmed monkeys include: Tuberculosis, Salmonella infection, Shigellosis, Cercopithecine Herpesvirus type I (Virus B), Monkeypox virus.

03 diseases for farmed crocodiles include: West Nile Fever, Crocodilian Herpesviruses and Salmonella infection.

Currently, the Department of Veterinary Medicine is discussing with the General Administration of Customs of China about pooling test samples to reduce costs for businesses, however, the Chinese side has not yet responded. Therefore, for now, the Regional Veterinary Departments and businesses will implement according to the requirements stated in the Protocol. The Department of Veterinary Medicine will continue to provide guidance after receiving feedback from the General Administration of Customs of China.

The Department of Animal Health recommends that units and enterprises proactively study carefully and organize implementation according to the provisions of the Protocol. During the implementation process, if there are any difficulties or problems, please contact the Department of Animal Health (International Cooperation and Communications Department, email: htqt.dahvn@gmail.com) for guidance and answers.