Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu Huong, deputy director of the Plant Protection Department, said at the “Providing Durian Export to China” conference on Sept. 12 at the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the total area of ​​51 durian-growing areas of China just has a code of about 3,000 hectares preserved, which is about 3.52% of the country’s total durian area.

If one adds 49 growing areas that fill out dossiers (about 2,750 ha), the area of ​​durian eligible for export accounts for less than 7% of the country’s total area of ​​over 85,000 ha.

Of the 15 provinces with an area of ​​more than 1,000 hectares of durian, the three provinces with the largest area and production are Tien Giang, Dak Lak and Lam Dong. The central highlands and the Mekong Delta are also considered the durian capitals of Vietnam, with both growing areas covering more than 16,000 hectares.

With export demand of about 1.3 million tons of durian per year, Ms. Huong estimates the scope for durian fruit is huge. The problem is that we need to standardize the process of growing, tending, harvesting, preserving and exporting.

Ms. Huong said that durian shipments to be exported need to prepare 5 factors: code, plant quarantine, growing area, packing plant and Covid-19 prevention. In addition, the technical staff in the planting area and in the packing plant should be trained, trained and certified by the crop protection department.

According to Ms. Huong, the Chinese side highly appreciates Vietnam’s methodical preparation in promoting and promoting durian export. The municipalities actively coordinated closely with the central office and at the same time exchanged information regularly and asked the specialist department for advice.

“The Plant Protection Agency has sent a cable to the place proposing to strengthen the inspection and verification to keep the issued planting area codes, and will continue to guide the planting areas that have not been issued codes to be approved by China soon.” said Huong.

There are many positive signs of bringing durian to China, but Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu Huong noted a few points such as: Of the 51 growing areas that received codes recently, half have been harvested. In the period from now to November, the average monthly production is only about 13,000-14,000 tons. In addition, 5 provinces, namely An Giang, Gia Lai, Dak Nong, Vinh Long and Soc Trang, have not yet received codes despite their great potential.

For durian plantations, the Plant Protection Office also pointed out some shortcomings, such as a lack of measures for pest monitoring according to ISPM 6, incomplete documentation of the harmful organism situation and insufficient garden hygiene to not monitor residues of pesticides, not having chemical storage facilities, the harvest is not hygienic, that Staff not trained…

At packing houses, many operations do not have dedicated nurseries; the factory does not guarantee zoning and hygiene; Measures to clean harmful organisms are not suitable; Durian has not been controlled in import and export; untrained staff, missing processes, insufficient packaging materials, incomplete records…

For the sustainable development of durian export activities, the Crop Protection Department recommends that communities actively develop and implement plans and strategies to develop sustainable local durian production; instruct the local specialized plant protection authority to monitor harmful organisms and guide prevention in the planting areas; Development and implementation of a pesticide residue monitoring program on durian; Monitor growing areas closely, packing plants have been given codes.

For growing areas and packers, Ms Nguyen Thi Thu Huong suggested that only raw materials should be imported from growing areas that have been given codes; The list of personnel in the facilities must be registered with the Phytosanitary Department in the national database system.

In particular, for the group of commercial exporters, the crop protection department should note that if the farm does not own the cultivation area, the establishment coded package must have a full power of attorney or written confirmation from the representative/owner of the code. In addition, it is necessary to actively link and create raw material areas of enterprises to ensure the quality of goods.

“The most important thing is that we are not allowed to cheat codes, use codes without permission, or mix goods from areas where codes are not granted, resulting in loss of reputation for Vietnamese durian goods or even loss of market,” Ms stressed Huong

Mr. Hoang Trung, director of Plant Protection Department, promised that plant quarantine centers across the country would allocate sufficient human and material resources to carry out plant quarantine and check residues of pesticides for durian batches exported.

In addition, the department will carefully check the delivery, in particular the code of the cultivation area, the code of the packaging company; have concrete plans to guide companies in implementing Vietnamese and Chinese regulations.

“We will keep regular contact with the plant quarantine authority of China, especially for land border gates, to coordinate inspection and quarantine, to ensure inspection efficiency and reduce time. Customs clearance with the shipment,” shared Mr. Trung.