Seed Trade and Phytosanitary Measures for Seeds Imported into China Dr. Wu Lifeng National Agro-technical Extension and Service Center, MOA

1. Seed Import and Export in China 2. Phytosanitary Measures for Seeds Imported Outline

1.1 Overview of Seed Import and Export in China Value of import (1000 US$) Value of export (1000 US$)  Overall increase in both import and export year by year  Deficit of 60 mill. US$ between export and import of seeds Figure 1: Statistics of seed import and export in China

1.1 Overview of Seed Import and Export in China Rice, corn, sunflower, sugar beet, cotton, Herbaceous flowers, melons and vegetables are dominant species (categories) in export and import in China Table 1: Statistics of seed import and export by species (category)

1.2.1 Rice Seeds Figure 2: Statistics of the import and export of rice seeds  Rice is the crop of largest amount of seeds exported  Annual increase by 15% and 30% in amount and value  240,000 ton and 60 mill. US$ in MY 2010/11 (1000 US$)ton Amount exported (ton) Value of export (US$)

1.2.1 Rice Seeds Bangladesh 16.2% Indonesia 16.8% Philippines 5.8% Others 0.6% Vietnam 35.8% Pakistan 24.7% Figure 3: Major destination of the export of rice seeds Major destinations include Vietnam, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Pakistan and the Philippines

1.2.2 Corn Seeds Value of import (1000 US$) Value of export (1000 US$) Figure 4: Statistics of the value of corn seeds imported and exported  Overall self-sufficient with little import and export  Import vs. export 4.4 mill vs. 0.5 mill. by value 17,000 vs by price 257 vs.161 by amount

1.2.3 Oil Crop Seeds Rape seed Soya bean Peanut Sun flower Rape seed Soya bean Peanut Sun flower (a) Amount of oil seeds imported (ton) (b) Amount of oil seeds exported (ton) Figure 5: Statistics of the amount of oil crop seeds imported and exported  More import than export  Sunflower is the dominant crop (3,800 ton in MY 2010/11)  USA is the largest source of the import (90% in MY 2010/11)

1.2.3 Oil Crop Seeds Others 2% Argentina 3% Chile 4% USA 91% USA is the largest source of the import Figure 6: Major sources of the sunflower seeds imported into China

1.2.4 Sugar Beet Seeds Value of import (1000 US$) Value of export (1000 US$) Figure 7: Statistics of the sugar beet seeds imported and exported in China  Mainly rely on import  1,000 ton and 12 mill. US$ in MY 2010/11  Germany is the major source of import

1.2.5 Cotton Seeds Amount imported (kg) Amount exported (kg) Amount imported & exported (kg) Figure 8: Statistics of the amount of cotton seeds imported and exported in China Significant fluctuation between MY 2007/08 to MY 2009/10

1.2.6 Vegetable Seeds Value of export Value of import (1000 US$) Amount exported Amount imported ton Figure 9: Statistics of the vegetable seeds imported and exported in China  The category of highest trading value (190 mill. US$ in MY 2010/11, 44% of all)  Deficit in trade of vegetable seeds (8,072 tons and 110 mill. US$ vs. 3,600 tons and 80 mill. US$)

1.2.6 Vegetable Seeds Netherlands USA Korea Japan Vietnam Taiwan region Italy France Thailand Hongkong Russia Indonesia New Zealand Denmark Australia Others Amount imported (ton) Amount exported (ton) Figure 10: Major sources and destinations of vegetable seeds imported and exported in China  Major sources include Indonesia, Thailand, Italy and New Zealand (70% of all)  Major destinations include the Netherlands, USA, Korea, Taiwan region, France etc.

1.2.7 Melon Seeds Value of export Value of import (1000 US$) ton Amount of export Amount of import Figure 11: Statistics of the melon seeds imported and exported in China  Surplus in trade of melon seeds  Significant increase in import (940 tons in MY 2004/05 to 4,400 tons in MY 2010/11)

1.2.7 Melon Seeds Others 4% Taiwan Region 4% Argentina 10% Denmark 12% Canada 13% USA 51% USA 4% Netherlands 8% Japan 20% Pakistan 3% Others 12% Korea 49% (a)Countries and regions imported from (b) Countries and regions exported to Australia 6% France 4% Figure 12: Major sources and destinations of melon seeds imported and exported in China

1.2.8 Herbaceous Flower Seeds Amount imported (ton) Amount exported (ton) Value of import (1000 US$) Value of export (1000 US$) Figure 13: Statistics of the herbaceous seeds imported and exported in China Dominated by export (970 tons vs. 48 tons in MY 2010/11, surplus 5.5 mill. US$)

1.2.8 Herbaceous Flower Seeds USA 3.2% Others 4.2% Taiwan Region 3.4% Japan 8.3% Korea 24.2% EU 56.7% Figure 14: Major destinations of herbaceous flower seeds exported in China

1.2.9 Forage Grass Seeds Amount exported (ton) Amount imported (ton) Figure 15: Statistics of the forage seeds imported and exported in China  The category of largest trading amount  Significant increase in import (13,054 tons to 33,338 tons, annually 20% up)  Remarkable decrease in export (5,316 tons to 2162 tons, 59% down)

1.2.9 Forage Grass Seeds USA Denmark Australia Argentina CanadaNew Zealand Alfalfa Festuca Bluegrass Ryegrass ton Figure 16: Major species and sources of the forage seeds imported in

Phytosanitary Measures for Seed Import  Legal and administrative system in seed quarantine  Phytosanitary Requirements for Seed Import  Procedure to Apply for Seed Import Permit

Managing Rules of the Phytosanitary Examination of the Application for Importing Seeds into China Regulation on Plant Quarantine Legal system Law of people's Republic of China on the Entry and Exit Animal and Plant Quarantine

Administrative System Forestry Entry-Exit Agriculture Examine and approve of applications for importing non- prohibited forestry seeds, field surveillance Examine and approve of applications for importing non- prohibited agricultural seeds, field surveillance Examine and approve of application for importing prohibited seeds, port inspection Safe use of imported seeds

Demarcation of Agricultural and Forestry Plants In addition to grain, cotton, oil, vegetable, sugar, tea, jute crops and pasture grass, fruits (except dry fruits e.g. chestnut and walnut), flowers (except rare wild flowers) and the Chinese traditional medicines are taken care of by the agricultural sector.

Plants Prohibited from Entering China MOA and AQSIQ promulgated the list of plants and plant products prohibited from entering into China in The list includes 7 species and genera, i.e. corn, soya bean, potato, ulmus spp., pinus spp., hevea spp., nicotiana spp.

Administrative System in Agricultural Sector Ministry of Agriculture Provincial Department of Agriculture Local Bureau of Agriculture Examining the applications for large amount of non-prohibited agricultural seed import organizing field surveillance of the imported seeds Examining the applications for small amount of non-prohibited agricultural seed import organizing field surveillance of the imported seeds in provinces Conducting field surveillance of the imported seeds in provinces

Amount Restriction on Provincial Approval of Seed Import CategoriesCropsMaximum Amount Seeds Grain: rice, wheat, corn, sorghum, beans, tubers etc. 100 KG Cash crops: rape seed, peanut, sunflower, sugar beet, cotton, jute, tobacco, broccoli, celery, onion, cabbage etc. 500 KG Turf grass, forage grass 1000 KG Seedlings Fruit trees: apple, Pear, peach, plum, apricot, leechee etc. 100 plants Tree flowers: brazil wood, Water chestnut etc. 500 plants Herbaceous (fruit) flowers: strawberry, tulip, carnation etc plants

Adminstrative System in Entry-exit Sector  35 Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureaus (CIQ)  500 more branches and local offices.  5,000 more employees

Pre-import Phytosanitary Requirements for Seed Import  New species PRA needs to be conducted  New producing areas Amount restriction is imposed. Maximum limit for seeds is for planting 0.1 hectare, for seedlings is 50 plants  Combination of species and producing areas The import permit includes a requirement that the seed consignment should not be infested by certain quarantine pests

Pre-import Phytosanitary Requirements for Seed Import The quarantine pest list is formulated by MOA and AQSIQ based on PRA and reviewed regularly. Currently there are 441 pest species and genera in the list.

During Import Phytosanitary Requirements for Seed Import  Designated ports The imported seeds can only be shipped to 45 designated ports in China.  Port inspection Local Entry-exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau conducts on spot inspection and laboratory test when necessary

Post-import Phytosanitary Requirements for Seed Import  Seeds of high risk: Need to be planted in official isolation center for inspection.  Other seeds imported Agricultural and forestry official conduct field surveillance during growing period. If any quarantine pest is found, emergency action will be taken to suspend or prohibit future import of the host plant.

Procedure to Apply for Seed Import Permit China is taking great effort to build a government of transparency and justice. The examination and approval of applications for importing seeds into China is strictly managed. MOA promulgated two guidelines this year to standardized the examining procedure, which clearly defines what documents required, condition for approval and examining timing.

Procedure to Apply for Seed Import Permit  All application for importing seeds into China should be submitted to appropriate provincial agencies in the area where the seeds are scheduled to plant.  For amount below restriction Provnicial Plant Protection Station or Forestry Protection Station examine and decide to approve or deny the application within 15 working days.  For amount above restriction Provincial agencies conduct preliminary examination and decide whether to forward the application to central agency within 15 working days Ministry of Agriculture and State Administration of Forestry examine and make final decision on the application within another 15 working days.

Acknowledgement Heartfelt thanks go to Prof. Du Zhixiong and Miss Zhan Lin in Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. The data used in this presentation are largely cited from their wonderful research work.