Joe McHugh (Donegal North East, Fine Gael)
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To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will provide an update on Irish agricultural and seafood trade with China; if he will provide an overview of the April 2012 trade mission to China that he led; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48906/12]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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China is a key strategic trade partner for Ireland and has a strong demand for imports of quality food, given the size of its population and concerns over food security and safety. Ireland is strategically placed to be a key supplier of quality meats, dairy products, beverages, seafood and other products and services to China. In 2011, Ireland exported €244m of these products to China. In the first six months of this year, Ireland has exported €181m in dairy products, pigmeat, seafood, beverages and other agri-related products to China. This is a 39% increase on the same period last year, at which time we had exported €130m. Total exports of Irish seafood to China in 2011 were €2.9 million, but the latest data up to July 2012 shows exports of seafood at €5.3 million, representing an 80% increase on 2011. This dramatic increase demonstrates the new business relationships Ireland has developed with key Chinese buyers.

Last April I lead the largest ever Irish agri-food trade delegation to China, with representatives from the meat, dairy, seafood, beverages, bloodstock and agri-services sectors and government bodies. The trade delegation which my Department, Bord Bia and Enterprise Ireland brought together, comprised of a total of 51 Irish companies and 127 individual. This was in addition to Government agencies such as Teagasc, BIM, the Marine Institute, the Sea Fisheries Protection Agency, Irish Thoroughbred Marketing and leading universities involved in the provision of educational courses in food safety and agricultural science.

During the Trade Mission, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between my Department and the Chinese Inspection and Quarantine Service (AQSIQ) on (i) sanitary and phyto sanitary issues, including provision for the establishment of a joint working group on SPS issues, b) the export of horse feed to China, and c) renewal of the bovine semen protocol was concluded. The MOU between my Department and the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture on Mutual Cooperation in the Agri-food and Fisheries areas was also renewed and a new MOU was signed between the Marine Institute and the Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences; this MOU builds on research work between the two institutions, facilitated by the Action Plan which I agreed with the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture in May 2011 on Mutual Cooperation.

In addition, some significant commercial outcomes were also achieved during the visit including the announcement of a $50 million project involving an Irish company in a joint venture in establishing a major Chinese equine facility; market access and conclusion of a contract by an Irish company for the supply of horsefeed to China, the first foreign company to gain such a contract; the signing of agreements between BIM and eight Irish Seafood companies to supply China with commercial samples of boar fish to China; the conclusion of an agreement by an Irish dairy company on an increased volume of dairy and nutritional ingredients to be supplied to the Chinese market and the launch of a range of Irish dairy products on the Chinese market.

Meeting were also held with a range of number of Chinese food companies which have lead to increased business opportunities and in one case a significant partnership agreement in terms of the supply of infant formula has since been concluded.

Since my visit there have been a number of follow on visits to Ireland by Chinese Ministers including Vice Minister Gao Hongbin of the Ministry of Agriculture with responsibility for Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Controls, who visited in May and Vice Minister Wei Chuanzhong of AQSIQ who visited in June. This latter visit resulted in the signing of Protocols on the direct export of horses from Ireland to China and on the export of fresh porcine semen to China. In addition, an MOU was concluded on the setting up of a technical working group on BSE, for market access for Irish beef. That working group has now been established.

The Mayor of Nanjing, Ji Jianye, who I met when in China also made a visit to Ireland in August, and was accompanied by one of the world’s largest pigmeat processors. There have also been follow up visits in relation to the purchase of thoroughbred horses. In relation to the seafood sector, trade in boarfish with China has commenced and opportunities for developing this trade are being assessed.

At government agency level, the Chinese Academy of Fisheries Science made a return visit in July of 2012 to investigate research possibilities with the Marine Institute. The areas of aquaculture and fisheries technology and sea food safety were of particular interest, and the group were shown the Institute’s research activities in bio-toxin chemistry, fish stock assessment, micro-tagging of hatchery juvenile fish and fish genetics. Continuing collaboration is currently being scheduled. In October AQSIQ visited the Sea Fisheries Protection Agency.

Following from the Irish/ Sino Forum on Building a Safe and Sustainable Future of Food Production, which took place during my visit to China, Teagasc and the Chinese Academy of Agriculture Sciences are now developing a Memorandum of Understanding which it is envisaged will lead to collaborative research between both Institutes.

While all these developments have led to greater cooperation and the deepening of relationships and trust at Ministerial, official and business level, which is crucial to trade in China, the evidence of the importance of this relationship to the Irish agri-food and seafood sector is reflected in the trade statistics and the continuing growth in our exports to China.

Overall, I am very pleased with the outcome of my trade visit to China and the very important follow up in terms of return visits by Ministers and industry, the growing collaboration between government agencies in areas of research and mutual cooperation and the tangible commercial outcomes. I would anticipate that our agri-food and seafood exports to China will continue to grow.