A combine and a grain cart work in a soybean field of Pellett family's farm in Atlantic, a small city in Iowa, the United States, Oct. 16, 2019.Photo:Xinhua

Chinese customs has completed quarantine protocols, covering 37 inspections of US animal and plant products agreed under the China-US phase one trade agreement, a Chinese official said on Monday, highlighting China's commitment to carry out the deal despite the COVID-19 pandemic and tense bilateral relations.

"As of now, 37 inspections of animal and plants related to the China-US economic and trade agreement have been completed in a timely and high-quality manner," Zhao Zenglian, head of the Department of Animal and Plant Quarantine at the General Administration of Customs (GAC), said at a press briefing.

Specifically, since the phase one trade agreement went into effect, the GAC has addressed issues related to market access for US potatoes, barley and pet foods, and removed a ban on US poultry imposed during an earlier bird flu epidemic, according to Zhao.

Reciprocally, Chinese citrus, fresh jujube and pears were also allowed to be exported to the US, Zhao added.

Under the phase one deal that went into effect in February, China has agreed to expand its purchase of US agricultural and other products by $200 billion within two years from 2017 levels. Though the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted global trade and bilateral relations have been greatly damaged by a series of US aggressions, both sides have committed to implement the deal, with China buying a record amount of US soybeans and other products. 

Through October, China's year-to-date total imports of US products that are covered in the phase one agreement hit $75.5 billion, according to the Washington-based Peterson Institute for International Economics.