On May 4, Mr. Chi Jingtao, COFCO vice president and general manager of COFCO Trade Development Company met with Mr. Gabriel Delgado, the Secretary of Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries of the Argentine Republic and his delegation at COFCO Plaza. The two sides exchanged views on COFCO’s investment plan in Argentina and its plan of importing Argentine agricultural products in 2015.
Mr. Chi Jingtao extended a warm welcome to Mr. Gabriel Delgado and his delegation and expressed his appreciation to Argentine Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries for its support to Noble Agri and Nidera. Mr. Chi Jingtao emphasized the great importance of South American market to COFCO Group, highlighting that with China’s market and Argentina’s resource the two sides are bound to achieve cooperation and win-win results. He noted that COFCO is willing to work with Argentina to jointly open a new chapter of comprehensive agricultural cooperation between China and Argentina.
Mr. Delgado gave a briefing on Argentina’s agricultural trade policy, indicating that the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries is ready to further optimize the process to increase efficiency by providing necessary assistance to COFCO Group regarding export-import license and inspection and quarantine for the latter’s import of corn, sorghum and beef from Argentina so as to further promote bilateral trade of agricultural products between the two countries.
Besides an in-depth exchange on expanding the import of Argentine soybean, expediting formalities for the export of Argentine beef, pushing for Argentine sorghum’s large-scale entry into Chinese market and accelerating bilateral cooperation in biotechnology and seed trade, both sides also discussed the feasibility of COFCO’s participation in a program of promoting farm irrigation equipment in Argentina under market conditions.
Mr. Gustavo A. Martino, Ambassador of Argentina to the People’s Republic of China, Ms. Yang Hong, senior general manager of COFCO Group and senior vice president of COFCO International, Mr. Chen Qianzheng, deputy general manager of COFCO Meat and general manager of Trade Division, Mr. Fan Zhenyu, general manager of Corn Division of COFCO Trade, and Mr. Xu Guanhua, general manager of Integrated Trade Division attended the meeting.
