On 22 June, Laos and Cambodia launched coordinated export and transit procedures for plants and plant products, formalising a trade corridor that increasingly channels Cambodian agricultural goods through Laos en route to China.
Lao Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Linkham Douangsavanh and Cambodian Minister of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries Dith Tina attended the launch at Thanaleng Dry Port in, Vientiane, which puts into effect plant health standards the two countries negotiated since early 2026.
Under the new procedures, the two governments signed plant safety standards covering 12 products.
Durian, longan, banana, mango, rice, and cassava will transit from Cambodia through Laos to China.
Meanwhile, rice, coffee, blueberries, pumpkin, cabbage, and tamarind will move as direct exports from Laos to Cambodia.
The launch builds on a bilateral agreement the two countries signed in late January 2026, which set clearer rules for moving Cambodian goods through Lao territory. Cambodian exporters have increasingly turned to this route as an alternative to shipping via Vietnam or Thailand, opening a more direct gateway to third-country markets.
Cambodian media have reported that the route simplifies customs procedures and cuts transport times from 15 to 20 days to about one week, a major advantage for exporters moving fresh agricultural products.
The Laos-China Railway underpins much of this shift.
The railway has carried more than 10 million tons of freight in 2026 so far, more than triple the volume recorded over the same period last year, averaging over 67,000 tons daily.
Refrigerated trains running since February 2023 now deliver Southeast Asian fruit to Chinese markets in as little as three days, and China has imported over 185,000 tons of fruit via the line this year, up 73.1 percent from 2025.
