Cambodian fruit treatment facility approved to export to South Korea
THE Hyundai-owned fruit treatment facility in Kampong Speu province said the company is ready to export mangoes to South Korea following fruit treatment inspections, according to Hyundai Corporation (Cambodia) Co Ltd managing director Lee Chang-hoon.
Lee said the inspections were supervised by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries’ General Department of Agriculture, the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Cambodia and Kotra Korean Business Centre earlier this month.
Department of Plant Protection Sanitary and Phytosanitary deputy director Heng Chhun Hy on Tuesday said the treatment facility could meet Korean phytosanitary requirements.
“By what we oversaw, the treatment facility is ready to export to Korea. The facility uses the latest model to control pesticides,” he said. “This will add more value [to the fruit] – especially mango – which is a potential for exports, and also we will be able to export to other destinations.”
The treatment facility will be a key player in attracting more investors to the Kingdom as it is the first of its kind, he added.
“It will be a good example for the agricultural sector – we need more fruit treatment facilities to bring our mangoes to the international market,” he said.
Hyundai’s Lee said the first step was a complete success.
“The most important point is to get permission from the Korean [Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry’s Animal, Plant and Fisheries’ Quarantine and Inspection] Agency in order to export to Korea,” he said.
The company plans to export 1,700 tonnes to Korea in the first year, and plans to eventually increase fruit exports to 50,000 tonnes – including coconut, durian and mangosteen.
Hyundai Corporation inked a deal with local mango producer Mao Legacy Co Ltd in November 2016 to supply the fruit and the two companies combined have about 2,400ha of mango farms in Kampong Speu province.