ChileCarne attended public-private meeting headed by the Undersecretary of Agriculture to introduce the newly appointed agricultural attachés for Vietnam, Rosaura Campusano, and Indonesia, Patricio Riveros.
Juan Carlos Domínguez, President of ChileCarne, represented the pork and poultry industry at the meeting to introduce Chile’s new agricultural attachés. The Undersecretary of Agriculture, Ignacia Fernández, said that these two appointments complete the four agricultural attaché posts for Southeast Asia. She added that it showcases the government’s commitment to strengthening trade and taking advantage of trade agreements such as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
Andrea García, Director of the Office of Agricultural Research and Policy, ODEPA, added that the trade pillar of Chile’s Sustainable Agri-Export Competitiveness Agenda aims to diversify markets through negotiations on trade and on plant and animal health. As such, the role of Rosaura Campusano in Vietnam and Patricio Riveros in Indonesia will be key.
Indonesia has a population of about 300 million people and a growing market. Chile’s bilateral trade agreement with the country gives us preferential tariffs, and Indonesia is also part of the CPTPP. Chile has already obtained health authorizations to export various agricultural products, such as grapes, kiwi, cherry, and wine. There is a pipeline of health negotiations to introduce new products, as well as the renewal of the Safety Control System for Chilean Plant-Based Fresh Foods, which allows fresh fruit to enter the country via Jakarta, Indonesia’s largest port. The office of the agricultural attaché was established over 10 years ago in the capital city of Jakarta and has two assistants.
The Vietnamese market has major growth potential for Chile’s exports, and diversifying destinations is a great opportunity to strengthen the export sector’s resilience in the face of trade restrictions in other countries. Chile also has a bilateral trade agreement with Vietnam, including tariff preferences further strengthened by the CPTPP. The market has seen a rapid growth, with health authorizations to export table grapes, apples, and cherries. However, there are various Chilean fruits that still can’t enter the Vietnamese market. Similarly, negotiations to clear Chilean meat exports have seen only modest progress in over 14 years, which is why having a representative in that country should facilitate negotiations and accelerate trade.
“For the pork and poultry industry, it is key to open the Vietnamese market, hopefully this year, followed by the Indonesian later on. Having these new agricultural representations will help us speed up the process with local authorities,” said Juan Carlos Domínguez.
Patricio Riveros is an Agricultural Engineer from Universidad Mayor, with Master’s degrees in Agricultural Economics from Universidad Católica de Chile and in Economic Analysis from Universidad de Chile. He was head of ODEPA’s Agricultural Data and Economy department and has more than 14 years of experience as legislative advisor, consultant, university professor, and analyst of markets and agricultural programs and policy.
Rosaura Campusano is an Agricultural Engineer with a Masters in Agricultural Sciences from the Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia was Head of International Affairs of the Agricultural and Livestock Service (SAG). She has broad experience in the public and private sectors as an advisor, head of legal support, and consultant, with 10 years of experience in international negotiations and health authorizations for agricultural and livestock exports. Campusano is also an expert in intellectual property issues, business development, and international negotiations coordination.
