MAFS Deputy Minister lauds Anwar’s China visit for agriculture MOUs

3 April 2023

By Wartawan Nabalu News

KUALA LUMPUR: Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food Security (MAFS) Chan Foong Hin has praised Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim for securing two memorandums of understanding (MOUs) on agriculture with China during his four-day official visit.

The MOUs, which involve protocols for exporting jackfruit and aquaculture products from Malaysia to China, were signed by Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir on behalf of MAFS, with Chinese Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Tang Renjian, and Minister of the General Administration of Customs of China (GACC), Yu Jianhua.

The signing ceremony was witnessed by Anwar and Chinese Premier Li Qiang on the last day of the visit.

In a press statement on Monday, Chan said that the MOUs will allow Malaysia to access the Chinese market for its aquatic products and jackfruits, in compliance with the international standards set by the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH), Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) principles and China government.

Chan said that this initiative is also in line with MAFS’s direction of empowering the aquaculture industry and increasing the ratio of seafood and aquaculture from 80:20 to 60:40.

"I believe that this success can also help to achieve the goal set by my minister Mohamad Sabu early this year, which is to increase the ratio of seafood and aquaculture from 80:20 to 60:40.

"Furthermore, following the MOU on phytosanitary protocols for the export of jackfruit from Malaysia to China, Chinese consumers may soon have the opportunity to taste this exotic fruit in their local markets," he said.

Chan congratulated Anwar on the achievements of his official visit to China and called on local fruit farmers and aquaculture industry players to actively cooperate with the outcomes of this visit and work together with the Madani government to develop local agriculture