Vegetables from Taiwan will be showcased for the first time on the mainland at an agricultural exhibition on April 20 in east China's Shandong Province.

Taiwan's involvement in the exhibition was made possible after the government annulled import tariffs on 15 categories of Taiwan-grown fruits last August.

He Ziyang, deputy director of administration department from the Ministry of Agriculture said more activities, such as forums and exhibitions would be organized to encourage more Taiwan farming produce to enter the mainland's market.

"Our efforts (to support Taiwan) are long-lasting and heart-felt," he said, adding that the Taiwan leader Chen Shui-bian had been determined to obstruct across-Straits exchanges in agriculture.

He said the mainland would make it easier for Taiwan to trade farm produce with the mainland by relaxing customs clearance and quarantine regulations.

"The next step will be to sit together and discuss safety and health standards."

Taiwan Provincial Farmers' Association has been busy preparing for the annual one-month agricultural produce exhibition in Shouguang, said Li Yonghua, secretary-general of the Across-Straits Agricultural Exchange Association.

The exhibition will showcase about 10 categories of fruit and 200 processed farming products from Taiwan. Some of the produce that will be displayed includes lemon, towel gourd and muskmelon.

In 2004, the Chinese mainland became the fourth export target of Taiwan's farm produce, with US$292 million in export volumes.

He said business had increased following last-year's visits to the mainland by Taiwan's former chairman of the Chinese Kuomintang Party Lien Chan and the chairman of the People First Party James Soong, who reached a series of agreements on cross-Straits relations with Hu Jintao, general secretary of the Communist Party of China.

(China Daily April 13, 2006)