Chinese authorities have reached a phytosanitary agreement with Brazil to allow imports of corn from the South American country, which until recently shipped relatively small amounts of the crop to the mainland via Hong Kong.

Newspaper Folha de S.Paulo reported the agreement was the only "concrete result" so far from a high profile visit of Brazilian Agriculture Ministry officials who met with Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang and General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) Vice Minister Wei Chuanzhong.

Discussions about the re-opening of the Chinese market for Brazilian beef would not be entertained, the publication said.

Out of Brazil's US$5.3 billion in global corn exports last year, only US$19 million went to the Chinese market.

Agriculture Minister Antonio Andrade told the publication of expectations that annual corn exports to China would reach 10 million metric tons (MT). This would be more than half of Brazil's global corn shipments last year of 19.8 million MT.

Brazilian President Dilma Rouseff's Chief of Staff, Gleisi Hoffman, said in a tweet that this expected volume would generate US$4 billion for the Brazilian economy.

Photo: Pratheepps, Wikimedia Commons

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