According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the export of vegetables and fruits helped Vietnam earn USD 410 million in April 2023, a sudden increase of 75% compared to April 2022. Cumulatively in the first 4 months of the year, the export value of vegetables and fruits reached US$1.39 billion, up 19.4% over the same period last year. Products with rapidly increasing sales are: dragon fruit, durian, mango, jackfruit…

CHINA IS THE LEADING MARKET

Analyzing the export market in the first four months of this year, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said China’s consumption of Vietnamese fruits and vegetables accounted for 58.7% market share, up 27.4% year-on-year is leading. same period in 2022. In addition, Laos, Korea and Japan also increased imports of Vietnamese fruit.

The export market for vegetables and fruits with the highest increase in value is Laos, 2.8 times higher than the same period in 2022. However, the Lao market accounts for only a small part of Vietnam’s total fruit and vegetable export turnover. In contrast, fruit and vegetable exports to the United States fell by almost 18% and to Australia by 20.2% compared to the same period last year.

Mr. Dang Phuc Nguyen, secretary-general of the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association, said that the increase in fruit and vegetable exports was due to the fact that Vietnam signed a protocol to officially export durian, sweet potato and banana to the Chinese market; and grapefruit to America, lemon to New Zealand.

In particular, the durian export contributes significantly to the impressive export results of the fruit and vegetable industry in the first four months of the year. Durian alone brought in $420 million in sales last year. Only durian alone, in the near future, export is very cheap. If the favorable situation continues, the sales of this king fruit will reach about 1 billion USD this year.

Mr. Dang Phuc Nguyen commented, “Vegetable and fruit exports will remain favorable in the second quarter of 2023. “The export of Vietnam’s fruit and vegetable industry is expected to reach US$4 billion in 2023. The Chinese market will earn about $2.5 billion this year, demonstrating the great prospects of this industry in a market of 1.4 billion people.”

IMPRESSION OF SELF AND WOOD PLANTS

One of the memorable events of the fruit and vegetable industry in April was that on April 19, 2023, Binh Tan district of Vinh Long province hosted the export ceremony of the first shipment of sweet potatoes from Vietnam through the official route to China. This shipment includes 28 tons of sweet potatoes exported by Song Toan Phat Trading Service Co., Ltd.

The official export of sweet potato products is the result of long-term negotiations between the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam and the General Administration of Customs of China and will end on November 22, 2022.

Binh Tan District is the place with the largest sweet potato area in the Mekong Delta, with an annual area of ​​12,000 ha – 14,000 ha, a production of 380,000 – 400,000 tons/year. Up to now, Vinh Long has had 27 sweet potato growing area codes and 3 sweet potato packing plants, which have obtained codes for export to China market.

The official export to the Chinese market is an opportunity to organize the development of Vietnamese sweet potato industry towards modernity, quality, safety, sustainability and close linkage from production to consumption. Since then, the efficiency has been improved and the value of Vietnamese sweet potatoes in the international market has increased.

Durian export is also very interested. As the world’s largest consumer market for durian, China spends about USD 4 billion on importing durian every year. China Customs data shows that the country imported 821,500 tons of fresh durian in 2021, a four-fold increase from 2017. In 2022, although affected by the Covid epidemic, China still imported about 800,000 tons of durian. Years ago, China mainly imported durian from Thailand.

As of July 2022, China will “officially issue a visa” for Vietnamese durians to be officially exported to that market. From September 2022 (when batches of durian were exported to China according to the protocol) to date, Vietnam’s durian export turnover has increased dramatically.

Ms. Ngo Tuong Vy, General Manager of Chanh Thu Fruit Export Group Joint Stock Company, estimates that the company will export 20,000 to 30,000 tons of durian to China in 2023.

However, Ms Vy is also concerned about the quality of the durian being exported to the Chinese market today. Because recently the price of durian has risen to a record high, goods are in short supply, some gardeners are chasing profits, forcing the barn to buy bad goods, cutting young goods (advantageous in weight), but not selectively. While merchants are short of goods, they accept to buy all types of durian regardless of quality.

“It took us many years to officially export durian to the Chinese market. Instead of making export-standard goods to gain market share, we are now chasing profits and buying massively inferior goods. Think of shipping. It is impossible, with a profit of 1-2 billion per trip, to lose credibility, to lose a relationship that took many years to build, “emphasizes Ms. Vy.

Speaking about the Chinese durian market, Mr. Dang Phuc Nguyen said that Vietnamese durian has many competitive advantages compared to Thai and Filipino durian. Vietnam’s durian production is now increasing to around 1 million tons, for a nearly year-round harvest, while Thailand and the Philippines only harvest seasonally. The shorter shipping distance from our country to China is also an advantage to keep Vietnamese durians fresh, and the shipping cost included in the price is cheaper than the competition.

To further speed up the export of vegetables and fruits, the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association said the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development should negotiate and sign more protocols for a number of officially exported products, including: dragon fruit, mango, watermelon, jackfruit , Rambutan… The Chinese market needs to open up more to items like green-skinned grapefruit, fresh coconut, avocado, lemon, pineapple and milkweed. It is necessary to promote more activities to reach other markets such as Korea, Japan, Australia, USA…