Traders mull partnership to sell Vietnamese rice in Chinese supermarkets

Farmers harvest rice in the Mekong Delta. Chinese enterprises have proposed partnering with Vietnamese rice exporters to sell rice to supermarket chains in China’s Guangdong Province - PHOTO: TRUNG CHANH

Chinese enterprises have proposed partnering with Vietnamese rice exporters to sell rice to supermarket chains in China’s Guangdong Province, it was announced during a conference on rice trading among the two countries, held in Can Tho City, reports the local media.

The event is a part of a trade promotion program gathering together the Import-Export Department under the Vietnam Ministry of Industry and Trade, some Vietnamese localities, a team of 15 Chinese food and foodstuff importers, and the Chinese Food and Foodstuff Association, which took place in HCMC, Can Tho City, and Kien Giang Province.

Chinese and local firms have conducted field trips to rice producing and processing facilities, as well as warehouses in Can Tho City and Kien Giang, to gain insights into Vietnamese rice, particularly the hygiene and safety found in the country’s rice production processes. Chinese companies highly praised the quality of local rice outlets, and expressed their desire to establish partnerships with local rice exporters, with an aim to deliver rice to Guangdong’s supermarkets.

China has remained Vietnam’s largest rice importer over the years, accounting for some 30% of the country’s total rice shipments. Last year, rice export volumes to China reached nearly three million tons, worth more than US$1 billion, up 31.6% in quantity and 32% in value, compared to figures from one year earlier.

However, rice exports to China still face many obstacles due to more stringent import policies from importers, along with tough competition from other rice exporters, such as India, Thailand, and Myanmar.