"Bulgaria is the focal point in the cooperation between China and Central and Eastern Europe in the field of agriculture", announced Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food Vassil Groudev at the 10th Agro-Trade & Economic Cooperation Forum between China and Central-Eastern European. He added that the successful activity of the Association for the Promotion of the Cooperation in the Field of Agriculture between China and Central and Eastern European Counties, which started working in Bulgaria on 26 June 2015, would help for the establishment of business contacts between companies from CEE and China, as well as for the realisation of real deals, finding business partners and investment opportunities. "The single database at the Center is an efficient tool for searching and finding actual investment projects and appropriate business partners, producers and traders from all spheres of the agricultural sector," he commented. The Forum was held on 24th September in Budapest.

“The traditionally good cooperation between Bulgaria and China leads to constant increase of the agricultural production export to China”, said Deputy Minister Groudev. ”For the first time in 2014 we had a positive trade balance in the trade with agricultural and food products, estimated at more than USD 17 billion. This is due mostly to the increasing export of grain,” Mr Groudev explained. According to him, Bulgarian agriculture has the potential to satisfy the growing interest of China to Bulgarian wines, dairy products, rose oil, bee products and other bio products.