Vietnam sees feasible US$3 billion export of fruits, vegetables

Latest statistics from the General Department of Vietnam Customs showed that the country pocketed nearly US$1.85 billion from vegetable and fruit export from the beginning of this year to July 15, surging by 45% from the same time last year.

In addition, consumers’ demand for Vietnamese vegetables and fruits will be higher during the Christmas and New Year holidays, auguring well for the country’s export revenue goal.

Vietnamese vegetables and fruits have been present in 60 markets globally. China, Japan, the Republic of Korea (RoK) and the US were four leading importers, accounting for 85% of total vegetable and fruit export value.

Shipments to traditional markets witnessed good expansion, including Japan (56%), China (50%), the US (23%), the RoK (15%) and Thailand (12%). Meanwhile, substantial growth was seen in Hong Kong (102%), the United Arab Emirates (81%), Laos (78.6%) and Russia (54.6%).

However, export revenue suffered stark decline in Cambodia (81.8%), Indonesia (53%) and the UK (42%).

Dragon fruit ranked first in export value, accounting for 50% of the total fruit export revenue. Binh Thuan province, the country’s largest dragon fruit exporter, has paid heed to developing VietGAP dragon fruit cultivation.

Nearly 7,700 hectares of land were zoned off for growing dragon fruit in line with VietGAP standards for exports to fastidious markets like the US and the EU.

Mangos, litchis and longans are also Vietnam’s strategic staples.

The Plant Protection Department under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is making a beeline for bringing litchis to Japan. It will continue negotiations and complete procedures to ship longans to Australia and New Zealand.

As the largest litchi growing area, Bac Giang province has exported 15,000 tonnes of litchis to China through three border gates of Lang Son, Lao Cai and Ha Giang. Another 13 tonnes have just been shipped to Australia while a batch of litchis has entered Thailand, opening big opportunities for the Vietnamese fruit.

The first batch of 3.5 tonnes of mangoes from northern Son La province underwent irradiation treatment for shipment to Australia. The mangoes, weighing 450-650 grammes each, were purchased by Agricare Vietnam Co., Ltd. at the price of VND22,000 (US$0.9) per kilogramme.

According to Lo Minh Hung, Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, the province has a plan to develop fruit tree cultivation, especially mangoes. Currently, it has some 4,000 hectares of mangoes with total productivity of over 3,000 tonnes.

By 2030, 100,000 hectares will be used to grow fruit trees, half of which will be set aside for mango plantation, he added.

Le Son Ha from the Plant Protection Department said that mango export to Australia will pave the way for the fruit to enter many new markets. The US, the EU, Japan, the RoK and Australia are prioritised markets for trade promotion, he stressed.