K Chamoe, First Export to Vietnam... 17 Years Since Quarantine Negotiations Began

This Export Shipment Weighed 486 kg...
Export Volumes Expected to Increase in April

Korean-grown chamoe will be exported to Vietnam for the first time. The export of K-chamoe to Vietnam comes 17 years after quarantine negotiations began in 2008 to allow exports to Vietnam.

The Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency announced that Wolhang Nonghyup in Seongju-gun, Gyeongbuk, exported chamoe that passed export quarantine to Vietnam for the first time on the 17th.

Oriental melon. (Stock photo)

The Quarantine Agency requested export approval for 10 items to Vietnam in 2008 and conducted negotiations, reaching agreements on seven items including apples, pears, grapes, tomatoes, strawberries, persimmons, paprika, and melons by 2023. Chamoe was the eighth item, finalized in 2024. The Quarantine Agency is also negotiating for the remaining items, tangerines and peaches.

An official from the Quarantine Agency said, "The chamoe exported this time weighed 486 kg and was a sample export quantity," adding, "We expect export volumes to increase after April, when chamoe is produced in earnest."

To export chamoe to Vietnam, cultivation sites and packing houses must be registered, and the absence of pumpkin fruit flies must be certified, among other export quarantine requirements agreed upon by both countries. Additionally, Vietnamese plant quarantine experts visit the sites to verify compliance, and only cultivation sites and packing houses that pass can export.

Kim Jeong-hee, head of the Quarantine Agency, said, "Taking this domestic chamoe export as an opportunity, we will continue to pursue customized quarantine negotiations so that various Korean agricultural products can be exported to multiple countries."