Fruit and vegetable exports break through to the billion-dollar mark.

Việt Nam•13/10/2024

Vietnam's fruit and vegetable exports in the first nine months of this year reached $5.7 billion, equaling last year's total and marking the highest level ever recorded.

It is no coincidence that in recent years, Vietnamese agricultural products have continuously achieved remarkable results. This is the fruit of a challenging period of strategic negotiations to open up markets, and efforts to restructure production to conquer the world's most demanding customers.

The billion-dollar journey of Vietnamese fruit.

Two years ago, durian was a relatively unknown item among Vietnam's key fruit and vegetable products. Export figures were only a few tens of millions of USD per year. Few could have predicted that, after market access, especially to China, durian exports would continuously increase exponentially.

Last year, export turnover reached $2.3 billion, and this year it has risen to $2.5 billion, making it the number one exported fruit and vegetable product of our country. Notably, Vietnam recently successfully signed a protocol to export frozen durian to the Chinese market.

A delegation from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development traveled to the US to negotiate market access for passion fruit, seedless lemons, guava, and jackfruit. Photo: Plant Protection Department.

According to Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Hoang Trung, this is a breakthrough achievement for Vietnamese agricultural products. With the Protocol on the export of frozen durian, we will have many advantages to boost durian exports. Peeled or whole durians that meet technical requirements can be exported.

It sounds easy, but achieving those growth figures was a long process of technical negotiations and market opening by relevant authorities. A prime example is the story of dragon fruit. Before durian became the fruit with the highest export value, dragon fruit was Vietnam's number one billion-dollar agricultural product, and it had to overcome many difficulties to access one of the world's most demanding markets: the United States.

Deputy Minister Hoang Trung recounted that the negotiation process to export dragon fruit to the US took nearly 10 years. At that time, due to the meticulous and extensive evaluation process, and because Vietnam lacked experience in implementing it, we proposed that the US send a delegation of officials to the US to directly handle technical matters and conduct negotiations.

During negotiations, the US side made several demands that, while technically effective, were detrimental to their goods. For example, they requested that fresh dragon fruit be trimmed at the base of the leaves because this is where aphids reside. However, cutting this part of the fruit would cause it to spoil quickly, affecting its quality and rendering it unsuitable for export.

If negotiators lack expertise and a firm grasp of the facts, they will be unable to provide convincing scientific explanations and justifications, resulting in the imposition of inappropriate measures on the product.

According to Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Hoang Trung, opening up markets is difficult, but maintaining and capturing those markets is even more challenging. (Photo: Tung Dinh)

Furthermore, the US initially requested a risk assessment and appropriate remedial measures for over 60 pest species; however, after intense negotiations and the provision of technical documentation, this list was reduced to only 6 species.

After passing this step, the US Department of Agriculture will post information on its website to solicit public and business feedback on whether to approve Vietnamese dragon fruit for entry into the US market.

“At that moment, I felt we had already succeeded 80-90%. It was very nerve-wracking, and every day, the negotiating team monitored what opinions the American people and businesses had in order to prepare for the next round of negotiations.”

"In August 2008, the US announced the official opening of its market to Vietnamese dragon fruit, marking a new milestone for our country's agricultural products. This was also the first fruit from our country to be exported to the US at that time," the Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development shared.

After being granted "visas," initially shipments of dragon fruit to the US consisted of only a few hundred kilograms each, transported by plane. However, today, hundreds of thousands of tons of dragon fruit have crossed the sea to conquer the world's most prestigious market. This initial success paved the way for easier negotiations on other products, following streamlined procedures.

In the US market alone, besides dragon fruit, Vietnam currently has 7 other agricultural products permitted for export: mango, longan, lychee, rambutan, star apple, pomelo, coconut, and soon passion fruit.

"Once we've entered the US market, we're not afraid of any other market. Currently, whatever products other markets like China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, New Zealand, Australia, and the EU need, we can meet their demands," Deputy Minister Trung said.

Fruit and vegetable exports in the first nine months reached $5.7 billion, equaling last year's record. Photo: N. Tùng

Production based on market demand.

Statistics from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development show that in the first nine months of this year, Vietnam's fruit and vegetable exports reached $5.7 billion (equal to last year's total). According to Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Hoang Trung, this achievement is thanks to Vietnam's market-oriented production over the past years.

Over the past 10 years, the agricultural sector has integrated deeply into the global economy, participating in numerous international arenas and forums. Vietnamese businesses have proactively grasped the needs and preferences of different markets, thereby developing more systematic and effective production strategies and plans based on market signals.

With continuously upgraded production processes, many demanding countries even bring plant varieties directly to Vietnamese farmers' land for cultivation. For example, Japan brings vegetable and sweet potato varieties to remote areas in Lam Dong province, instructing farmers to grow the desired products.

However, as Deputy Minister Trung lamented: Opening up the market is difficult enough, but maintaining and expanding market share is even more challenging. The recent case of durian can be taken as a prime example. Initially, the rapid development of this industry led to it being flagged by neighboring countries at times.

"There were shipments where, upon arrival at the destination, our partners sent back videos warning that the durians were still green, unripe, tough, and white. At that time, we were very embarrassed," Mr. Trung recounted. If this situation continues, consumers in other countries will turn their backs on Vietnamese agricultural products, and in the long run, the risk of having exports halted remains.

With durian, the competition is currently very intense. Neighboring countries like Malaysia, Cambodia, and Indonesia have started growing it and exporting it to the Chinese market, while Thailand is also continuously improving its quality.

Source