China and Asean aim to expand agricultural trade to more than US$100 billion in 5 years

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) topped China’s agricultural trade last year, reaching US$61 billion, ahead of the US and Brazil

But diplomats on both sides want to enhance agricultural collaboration, including in technology and training, with Hainan a possible ‘gateway’ for trade

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China’s agricultural trade with Asean reached US$61 billion last year. Photo: Xinhua

Published: 7:30pm, 29 Mar 2023

China and the 10-nation Asean bloc should explore potential agricultural collaboration, with Beijing eager to enhance its ties with the region, officials and diplomats said at the Boao Forum for Asia.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) topped China’s agricultural trade last year, reaching US$61 billion, followed by the United States and Brazil, according to Sui Pengfei, head of international cooperation with China’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

“Given the density and scale of populations in China and Asean, we cannot tolerate any mistake which undermines food security in the region,” Sui said at the summit on the tropical island of Hainan on Wednesday.

“We should keep our agricultural trade at top level. We have 40 per cent of agricultural investment in total in Asean, which is our foundation for moving forward. We are not only aiming to expand agricultural trade to above US$100 billion in coming five to seven years, but also optimise trade structure.”

We indeed need to make efforts to increase the value of our trade

Sui Pengfei

Sui said there was a huge amount of room to improve the quality of trade beyond raw materials and primary goods, suggesting an increase in technological and professional exchanges could help.