Vietnam eyes bigger share in Russia's farm produce market

Moscow (VNA) - Russia is a very important market of Vietnamese farm produce, said Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Luong Le Phuong while opening a seminar on the foothold of Vietnamese farm, forestry and seafood products in Russia held in Moscow on Sept. 23.

Vietnam earned 239 million USD from the export of the staple to Russia
in 2007, of which 118.7 million USD was from seafood alone.

However, only 36 out of Vietnam 's total 200 seafood processors and
exporters have to date sold their products in Russia - a market with
more than 142 million people.

Phuong attributed Vietnam 's modest farm export earnings from Russia to
both Vietnamese and Russian businesses' failure to get to know each other's
demands and capacity.

"There was a time that Vietnamese businesses have concentrated only on the
US and EU markets and forgotten the big and potential Russia ," Phuong
admitted.

He said Vietnam will hold a trade promotion seminar in Russia annually
in addition to organising market research tours of Vietnam for Russian
importers with a view to making the two countries' businesses better
understand their demands and reach deals.

Phuong believed that such efforts will be paid off and two-way trade value
between Vietnam and Russia will reach 2-3 billion USD a year from 1
billion USD in 2007, with seafood, rice and tea remaining Vietnam 's key
export lines to Russia.-Enditem