The Chinese rice wine intoxicated Irish sea crayfish, and the Spanish pork was doused with red rot milk. This was the dish served by European Union Agriculture Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski to entertain guests in Shanghai.
The intention of using such a combination, in Vojchekhovsky’s own words, “demonstrates that food and beverages from Europe and China can be perfectly combined, and it is also a real case of us jointly safeguarding the culinary tradition.”.
Wojchekhovsky is a member of the European Commission responsible for agricultural affairs and made his first visit to China during his tenure from April 21 to 26. For the purpose of this trip, he stated in an interview with First Financial reporters that increasing the EU’s agricultural product exports to China is an important purpose of this trip, and also hopes that agricultural trade between the two sides will not be affected by other factors.
(‘EU Agriculture Commissioner Wojchekhovsky Visits China (Source: European Commission)’,)
EU Accelerates Agricultural Exports to China
According to the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on April 17th, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian stated during a regular press conference that “China agrees to lift restrictions on German beef and apple exports to China.”. On April 16th, the General Administration of Customs and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs announced the lifting of the mad cow disease ban on boneless beef from Germany under 30 months of age, which was issued in 2001.
On January 12th of this year, the General Administration of Customs and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs also announced the lifting of the ban on African swine fever in Belgium. By the end of March, 51 tons of Belgian pork products were successfully cleared from Tianjin Customs, marking the return of Belgian pork products to the Chinese market since the suspension of exports to China for more than five years in September 2018.
In this regard, Vojchekhovsky told First Financial that strengthening the EU China trade relationship is of great significance. China is a very important partner of the EU, and open food trade is very important for both the EU and China. The signals released by both sides in reducing trade barriers are positive.
He further told First Financial that pork exports are very important for EU agriculture, but not all EU countries can now export pork to China. He expressed full understanding of China’s attitude on the African swine fever issue. “The EU currently only has some regions facing this issue, and has very strict policies to prevent the spread of diseases within the EU. We hope that China can trust the EU’s regulatory system and reduce the number of affected regions and countries.”.
Spain and Germany belong to the first tier of pork production in the European Union,
Wojchekhovsky believes that in addition to pork, the EU’s share of beef exports to China is very small, and the EU can also provide high-quality poultry meat for the Chinese market. In addition, there is room for improvement in dairy products, wine, and olive oil from the European Union.
There is still room for improvement in agricultural trade between China and Europe
When it comes to China’s agricultural exports to the European Union, Wojchekhovsky told First Financial, “I myself am a consumer of Chinese cuisine. I have visited Chinese restaurants many times because I can eat food that Europe does not have. We have an open attitude towards Chinese food, understand Chinese food, and understand its value. We hope that European food can also be welcomed and understood in China.”
Regarding the potential for trade between China and Europe, he stated that based on last year’s statistics, EU consumers consume approximately 20 euros (approximately 155 yuan) of Chinese food annually, while Chinese consumers consume 10 euros (approximately 77.5 yuan) of EU food during the same period. Therefore, there is still room for growth in EU trade with China.
He further introduced to the reporter from First Financial that during his visit to China, he brought 73 representatives of large European food companies with a total market value of 350 billion euros. They are all very interested in sales in China and hope to bring benefits to trade between China and Europe.
He also stated that sometimes there may be problems in the bilateral trade relations between China and Europe, which is normal in commercial exchanges. However, he believes that “problems encountered in other areas should not affect food trade, as open food trade is crucial for ensuring global food security and deepening trade relations.” However, Vojchekhovsky did not provide a detailed explanation of “other areas.”.
At the same time, EU agriculture has also encountered its own crisis. In recent months, farmer groups in several European countries such as France, Germany, Italy, and Poland have launched a series of protests, demanding that the EU and their governments improve the agricultural market environment and provide more support to agricultural operators.
Although the specific demands of farmers vary from country to country, most of the protests focus on the EU Common Agricultural Policy and the European Green Agreement. The goal of the EU Common Agricultural Policy is to unify agricultural subsidies among EU member states and balance agricultural competition among countries, but many farmers believe that their interests have been harmed.
Wojchhovsky explained to China Business News that the COVID-19 epidemic, the Russia-Ukraine conflict, natural disasters and cost increases have all caused the current difficult situation of EU farmers. As an EU member, he also held multiple talks with protesting farmers in his own country Poland.
He further stated that the EU plans to modify its common agricultural policy, simplify and relax some standards, and hopes that EU farmers’ protests can be eased and stopped in this regard. It is worth noting that on April 24th during Wojchekhovsky’s visit to China, the European Parliament passed a revised plan for the EU Common Agricultural Policy, but the plan still needs to be approved by each member state of the EU.