TAIPEI, Nov. 3 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese mainland's Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits (ARATS) and Taiwan's Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) agreed Tuesday to cooperate on protecting the interests of both employers and employees engaged in offshore and ocean fishing.

During a meeting in Taipei, Zheng Lizhong, standing vice president of the ARATS, also agreed with Kao Kung-lian, vice chairman and secretary general of the SEF, to work together on solving inspection and quarantine problems in farm produce trade.

They also decided to step up cooperation on standardizing measurements and authentications and consumer goods safety, as well as on building a mechanism to resolve issues concerning double taxation.

The ARATS and the SEF are authorized by authorities in the mainland and Taiwan to handle cross-Strait issues.

The two sides agreed Tuesday that the ARATS delegation to visit Taiwan in next month would stay for five days for talks with the SEF in Taichung city.

The December meeting in Taichung will be the fourth round of meetings between ARATS and SEF leaders since last year.

The two organizations agreed to meet twice a year on the mainland and Taiwan in turn, after cross-Strait negotiations resumed last June following an almost 10-year suspension.