The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has said that there has been a "significant step" made towards Irish beef gaining access to the Vietnamese market.

Minister of State with responsibility for food promotion, mew markets, and research and development, Noel Grealish visited Vietnam this week as part of a programme to mark St. Patrick’s Day.

As part of his itinerary, Minister Grealish met with Vice Minister Hoang Trung at the Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and the Environment.

During the meeting cooperation between the two countries as well as opening the Vietnamese market for Irish beef was discussed.

Minister Grealish said that he was "very pleased" to meet with his counterpart at the Ministry of Agriculture and the Environment in Vietnam.

"It was a great opportunity to discuss our longstanding cooperation in the area of agri-food, which has accelerated in recent times with the inception of the Irish Vietnam AgriFood Partnership.

"I was pleased to see the work of this important partnership programme which is aimed at strengthening Vietnam’s food systems," he said.

At the meeting, Vice Minister Hoang Trung confirmed that his ministry had approved the positive report of the inspection of Irish beef systems carried out by Vietnamese officials last October.

He confirmed that the remaining step was for the two ministries to coordinate and agree on an export health certificate to complete the procedures for opening Irish beef market access to Vietnam.

“Vietnam is a priority market for Irish beef market access. Engagement at political, diplomatic and technical levels has been ongoing in recent years.

"I welcome this positive response which represents a significant endorsement of Ireland’s high food safety standards.

"This is very positive news which will contribute to the ongoing development of the Irish beef sector and in turn positively impact on family farms and employment in rural Ireland," Minister Grealish said.

The minister said that officials in his department will now begin the process of agreeing an export health certificate with their counterparts in Vietnam.

"Once completed this will allow for the commencement of trade in Irish beef to Vietnam," he said.

While in Vietnam Minister of State Grealish also met with a number of Bord Bia and Enterprise Ireland client companies and their Vietnamese customers.