Coconut exports are far expanded thanks to deep processing

	Tra Vinh’s wax coconut enters Australian market
	Durian, coconut expected to join “1-billion-USD” club of exports

Vietnam has 7,000 hectares of coconut-certified organic according to U.S.and European standards.

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In recent years, more and more large enterprises have poured capital into building coconut processing factories. Specifically, at the beginning of this year, in Ben Tre, Ben Tre Coconut Investment Joint Stock Company (BEINCO) inaugurated the BEINCO coconut processing factory with 8 modern production lines for 8 product lines, includingdried copra, coconut milk, concentrated coconut milk, thick coconut creamer, coconut milk drink with coconut jelly, carbonated coconut water, virgin coconut oil, coconut water with copra.

Along with the investment in the processing plant, BEINCO also focuses on developing the organic material area to stabilize production and towards green production, clean food, and good for community health. Until now, BEINCO's raw material area has reached out of the province and expanded to Tra Vinh and Tien Giang provinces... Including 1,200ha of coconut-certified organic production by Control Union Certification, qualified for export tothe U.S.and European markets. BEINCO's goal is to develop 5,000 hectares of organic coconuts by 2025. Beinco's products with Delta Coco brand have been exported to more than 43 countries worldwide, and a product distribution system was built covering 63 provinces and cities across the country.

In addition to BEINCO, Vietnam's coconut industry also has the presence of many big names such as Luong Quoi Coconut Processing Co., Ltd with Vietcoco brand, Ben Tre Import-Export Joint Stock Company (Betrimex) with Cocoxim brand, G.C Food Company, Green Coco Company, Bac Tea Company…

According to businesses, investing in deep processing has created a new face for Vietnam's coconut industry with hundreds of high-value products. Mr Dang Van Thanh, Chairman of ThanhThanh Cong Group, shared, in the past, coconut water was mainly produced as coloured water for food processing, so the value was low, and the output was very precarious. In that situation, Thanh Thanh Cong established a member company called Betrimex to process and canned coconut water. Accordingly, 90% of the factory's products are exported to many markets, and currently,Betrimex is still the largest canned coconut water factory in Vietnam. Recently, Betrimex also produced more coconut milk products to serve the Muslim market in countries that do not use milk derived from animals.

Another enterprise in the coconut industry is Sokfarm Company, which has only been established for about 4 years but has also made a mark with many unique deep-processed products. Sokfarm has 7 products made from coconut, including coconut flower nectar drink, coconut flower nectar concentrate, coconut flower sugar, coconut flower nectar vinegar, fermented coconut nectar, coconut flower nectar soy sauce and coconut flower nectar cocoa. Each month the company consumes 15-20 tons of raw honey to produce 3-4 tons of products.

Currently, Sokfarm's products have begun to be exported to many markets, such as Germany, the Netherlands, and Japan... and have received positive consumer feedback. In particular, Sokfarm's products are also "popular" with international customers by following the right trend of sustainable development and adaptation to climate change. Specifically, the areas of coconut infested with salt have affected the yield and taste of coconut water. Sokfarm's deep-processed products have helped solve this problem, providing a stable livelihood for coconut farmers in TraVinh, which is facing serious salinization.

Just returned from Thaifex Anuga Fair 2023, Mr Nguyen Diep Phap, Deputy General Director of the International Business Division, Member of the Board of Directors of G.C Food Joint Stock Company (G.C Food) is pleased to share that all customers at Thaifex have responded well in quality and taste of the company's coconut jelly. In particular, 2-3 customers from the Middle East said they would sign a purchase contract. Despite the difficult situation, this result continues to underpin G.C Food's growth. Accordingly, in the first 5 months of 2023, G.C Food's coconut jelly export turnover has reached VND 45 billion, an increase of 10% over the same period in 2022. MrPhap said that the market demand for coconut jelly is still very great, so G.C Food plans to expand the coconut jelly factory to double its capacity and, at the same time, boost exports, focusing on markets with large consumption, such as China, Taiwan, Eastern Europe, Middle East…

Potential in green consumption trend

According to the International Coconut Community (ICC), Vietnam coconut has the highest yield and quality in the world. In the country, coconut trees are ranked fourth among perennial industrial plants with a large planting area, after rubber, pepper, and cashew. Currently, the coconut area in the country reaches about 190,000 hectares, concentrated in the Central Coast provinces and the Mekong Delta. According to the Vietnam Coconut Association, there are 7,000 hectares of coconut-certified organic according to U.S.and European standards.

In particular, coconut products have great potential for development in the trend of green consumption. The Government has many policies and executive documents to reduce and replace single-use plastics, promote green consumption and build a green economy. In particular, the Prime Minister emphasized thatStriving 2025 Vietnam does not use single-use plastic. This is a great advantage for coconut trees and coconut products such as chopsticks, spoons, household appliances, food processing, cosmetics, etc.

Kim Boi Handicraft Co., Ltd has nearly 20 years of experience in exploiting and manufacturing products from coconut trees, coconut shells, and coconut shells to serve industries, agriculture, construction irrigation, environment, fine art decoration and consumption... Mr Dang Quoc Hung, Director of Kim Boi Company, said that the company's products are very popular in markets of developed countries such as Europe, America, and Japan. Japan, Korea... Currently, the company's products have been exported to more than 30 countries and territories with an annual turnover of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Mr Hung said that in the past, coconut shells, coconut shells ... were almost only discarded, polluting the environmentand even costing a lot to handle. Taking advantage of this source of raw materials to put into production not only helps to reduce the amount of waste entering the environment as well as treatment costs but also creates income for people in the collection, preliminary processing and production of products.

Similarly, Tra Bac Joint Stock Company is also producing many products from coconut, which the main product is activated carbon made from coconut shells used in water and air filtration. Currently, 70% of production output is exported to the E.U., South America, and Asia markets, with an output of about 6,000-6,500 tons/year, at a price of 1,800 USD/ton.