Many opportunities for Vietnamese tea exports to the UK

[caption id="attachment_604548" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Farmers in Bach Dang commune (Hoa An, Cao Bang) harvest tea. Photo: Chu Hieu/VNA[/caption] According to experts, there are many opportunities for Vietnamese tea products to increase their market share in the UK as Vietnamese tea currently accounts for only 0.1% of the total tea imported into the UK. Currently, Vietnam is ranked 23rd among the major tea suppliers to the UK market. However, Vietnamese tea exports to this market have decreased significantly in both value and volume in the first half of 2023. The average price of imported tea from Vietnam is currently 4,928 USD per ton, down 0.4% over the same period last year. In the first 6 months of the year, the UK spent 160 million USD to import 53,000 tons of tea, down 9.7% in volume and 9.4% in value over the same period last year, according to data from the International Trade Center (ITC). Kenya is emerging as the UK's most important tea supplier, accounting for 56.8% of total tea imports. Kenya exported 30,100 tonnes of tea worth US$70.9 million, up 3.2% in volume and 1.6% in value over the same period last year. Other notable tea exporters to the UK include India, Malawi and Switzerland. Compared to other suppliers that do not have a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the UK, Vietnamese tea products have a more competitive advantage in this market thanks to incentives from the UK-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA). Therefore, according to the Import-Export Department (Ministry of Industry and Trade), if the benefits from the UKVFTA are effectively exploited, Vietnamese tea products will have the opportunity to increase their market share in the UK market. However, like the European market, the UK is also considered a demanding market. Therefore, trade promotion agencies need to come up with solutions to support businesses in accessing markets, establishing links with customers, especially improving product quality to meet UK standards and regulations. It is not simply the presence of a trade agreement that can naturally create markets or customers, but also through long-term efforts in market research, understanding consumer needs as well as other regulations and standards, to have full compliance. According to the proposal of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), to increase tea exports, especially to the UK market, Vietnamese businesses are encouraged to promote cooperation, develop high-quality raw material areas and switch to new types of tea. Businesses should also refine processing procedures and comply with food safety standards to meet the needs of foreign markets, especially demanding markets like the UK. Vietnam currently ranks 7th and 5th in the world in tea production and export. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, our country has allocated 123,000 hectares of land for tea cultivation, with the capacity to produce 1.02 million tons of fresh tea buds. Vietnamese tea products are present in 74 countries and territories around the world, with the main destinations being Pakistan, China, Russia and Indonesia./.

Mai Huong