China's State Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection
and Quarantine (AQSIQ) will allow more fruits, vegetables and
seafood from Taiwan to be exported to the mainland from May 1.
The notice released on Friday said that the number of types of
fruit that can be exported will be increased from 18 to 22. The
four new fruits added to the list include oranges, lemons, pitayas
and cantaloups.
Eleven types of Taiwan-grown vegetables will also be able to be
sold on the mainland.
The seafood from Taiwan fishing boats will be allowed to be
shipped to the coastal Fujian province and it will be subject to
the same trading policies as on the mainland.
These preferential measures are more practical and flexible for
Taiwan farmers and will greatly assist them to sell their products,
said Yu Taiwei, Director General of the Department of Animal and
Plant Quarantine of AQSIQ.
He added that growers of oranges and lemons have suffered a lot
from the sale of their products in Taiwan in recent years.
"It is good news for Taiwan fruit and vegetable growers since
they will have more channels to sell their products", he said.
"Yet with a comparatively high price, these vegetables and
fruits are placed at a disadvantage in the mainland's market", Yu
said, attributing the high price to high transport costs across the
Taiwan Straits.
He said that generally speaking the transport of these products
to the mainland will take two days via planes and six or seven days
via ship, which will cost a lot of money and greatly affects the
freshness of these products.
With more convenient transportation, Taiwan farmers and growers
would benefit more from these measures, he said.
Statistics show that Taiwan has exported a total of 3,400 tons
of fruits to the mainland in 2005, worth of US$3.22 million and an
increase of 35 percent from that of 2004, despite a decrease in
fruit production in Taiwan due to typhoons and rainstorms last
year.
(Xinhua News Agency April 22, 2006)