Vice Minister Garay expressed Peru’s interest and need to expand the agro-export basket and facilitate access to important products such as asparagus and avocado, whose phytosanitary protocols are still under review.
(Agraria.pe) Deputy Minister for Agricultural Development Policy and Oversight Christian Garay met with Tina Hutchison, Undersecretary for Agricultural Trade and Regulation at the Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF), to discuss issues in the sector, such as access to new agricultural products, implementation of technology and action strategies in response to new European Union regulations on free deforestation.
Regarding the first point, Vice Minister Garay expressed Peru’s interest and need to expand the agro-export basket and facilitate access to important products such as asparagus and avocado, whose phytosanitary protocols are still under review.
For her part, Undersecretary Hutchison paid close attention to Peru’s interest and indicated that she will instruct the relevant government offices to address it.
As is known, since February 11, 2020, Peru and Australia have maintained a free trade agreement, which has allowed the promotion of agricultural exports to this important destination, which currently has 26 million consumers.
The meeting also addressed the importance of implementing technologies that develop agriculture between both nations and the challenges that both countries have in implementing the European Union Regulation on Deforestation and Harvesting (EUDR), indicating that Australia faces challenges in georeferencing agricultural producers’ plots, as well as in the issue of traceability.
The Australian Government has contacted its national supply chains and is currently evaluating them; however, considering the scope of the regulation (of the European Union), they expressed their interest in knowing the progress of Peru.
Within the framework of the APEC forum, Vice Minister Garay highlighted the need to have Australia’s support to achieve consensus and approval of the two agreements in the year of the Peruvian Presidency on food security: i) Principles to reduce and prevent food losses and waste in the APEC region” (FLW Principles); ii) Ministerial Declaration on Food Security of Trujillo 2024.
Officials from Senasa, Serfor, Agromercado, the Office of Cooperation and International Affairs and the General Directorates of Agricultural Development, Policies and Statistics of the Ministry of Agrarian Development and Irrigation (Midagri) also participated in the meeting.
