Farmers in Peru will benefit from the country's expanded trade ties with China, which will further open the Chinese market to a range of high-quality specialty agricultural products from Peru.
On Nov 14, Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks with Peruvian President Dina Boluarte, and the two countries signed a protocol on upgrading the bilateral free trade agreement.
The upgraded agreement includes agricultural deals worth hundreds of millions of U.S. dollars in trade, allowing seven new exports from Peru to enter the Chinese marketplace -- pecan nuts, chestnuts, frozen fruits, blueberries, avocados, mangos, and beef and pork.
The agreement will significantly benefit the country's small farmers who produce these goods, said Angel Manero Campos, Minister of Agricultural Development and Irrigation of Peru.
"Avocados from small producers will also be able to get to China in frozen form. Also, pecan nuts and beef will access the market. In the Andean region we can develop cattle breeding with mainly small producers. That's how these new agreements allow us to develop a new range of Peruvian produce which is mainly from small producers. That's an important change in Peru because until now agri-exportation has been led by the big producers," he said.
The Chinese market also presents a significant opportunity for cattle traders in Peru's relatively small beef sector.
"China as a market is very interesting. So we have to produce quality, sell quality and supply as much as we can. I don't think that we have to compete with Brazil, Argentina or Uruguay, which are traditional meat producers," said John Chauca, a cattle trader.
Chancay Port, a new Chinese-built project north of the Peruvian capital, will slash freight times across the Pacific, allowing fresh mangoes and other products to reach the Chinese marketplace much more quickly.
Peruvian farmers to benefit from expanded trade ties with China
