Brazil is planning to expand the scope of agricultural exports to China, said the country’s new Agriculture Minister, Kátia Abreu.

Ms Abreu pointed out that the Chinese market is vital to the growth of Brazil’s agricultural sector, Chinese official news agency Xinhua reported.

She said Brazil and China should not only boost direct trade of agricultural goods, but also aim to exchange more high value-added agricultural products.

“We need to sign more trade agreements with China,” said Ms Abreu.

She is planning to visit China in March to negotiate tariff cuts on Brazilian coffee imports and to propose common health inspection standards for Brazilian meat exported to China.

The Brazilian Agriculture Ministry expects beef exports to China to reach at least US$700 million this year. China is the largest importer of agricultural goods from Brazil.