Fruit and vegetable exports flourish

After many market fluctuations in the first quarter of 2023, in the second quarter of 2023, fruit and vegetable exports improved significantly. This created joy and motivation for the entire fruit and vegetable industry in particular and agricultural exports in general.

Container trucks carrying durian to the Chinese market. Photo: TH

According to statistics from the General Department of Vietnam Customs, in June 2023, Vietnam's fruit and vegetable export turnover is estimated to reach more than 1 billion USD, with a cumulative export turnover of 2.75 billion USD in the first 6 months of 2023, an increase of more than 63% over the same period in 2022.

Mr. Dang Phuc Nguyen - General Secretary of the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association said that the export value of fruits and vegetables exceeded a billion dollars in a month, which is a record so far. The reason why the Vietnamese fruit and vegetable industry reached this record is because the Chinese market opened up to many types of Vietnamese fruits such as durian, grapefruit, etc. in June 2023.

China leads the top 5 markets for importing Vietnamese fruits and vegetables, accounting for more than 63% of the total export value. Next are the US, South Korea, Japan, and the Netherlands. In addition to the US market, which decreased by 12% compared to the same period in 2022, the Korean, Japanese, and Dutch markets increased by 12%, 0.5%, and 70%, respectively. With this momentum, if the fruit and vegetable industry maintains its momentum until the end of 2023, the annual export turnover can reach 5 billion USD as set by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for 2025 - Mr. Nguyen Phuc Nguyen emphasized.

Explaining this growth, a representative of the Import-Export Department, Ministry of Industry and Trade , said that China is currently implementing a policy of formalizing trade activities, so Vietnamese goods need to be directed towards official export. Vietnam has also built many raw material areas and issued growing area codes according to the requirements of the Chinese market, so circulation in this market can meet the requirements. The potential for exporting fruits and vegetables to the Chinese market is huge. Consumers here also focus on product quality, design and competition, so both farmers and businesses must be united to achieve surprising export figures.

On the business side, if they want to export fruits and vegetables to the Chinese market, they must regularly update and comply with regulations on quality standards, testing, quarantine, packaging, and traceability; at the same time, they must focus on building brands, protecting brands, and carefully researching market needs and development trends.

Vietnam's fruit and vegetable industry has been granted a "visa" to circulate to China - a market with great growth potential for Vietnamese fruits and vegetables, as well as competition for similar products from other markets. Since the last months of 2022, green-skinned grapefruit has been granted a growing area code to enter this market. Most recently, sweet potatoes and durian have also been granted codes for the Chinese market. This proves that Vietnam's fruit and vegetable industry has more and more motivation to invest in production and export.

According to Mr. Dang Phuc Nguyen, official export to the Chinese market is an opportunity to organize the development of Vietnamese fruit and vegetable industries in a modern, high-quality, safe, sustainable direction and closely linked from production to consumption market. From there, improve efficiency and raise the value of Vietnamese fruit and vegetables in the international market.

As for durian, China spends about 4 billion USD each year to import. Data from China Customs shows that the country imported 821,500 tons of fresh durian in 2021, a four-fold increase compared to 2017. In 2022, despite being affected by the COVID epidemic, China still imported about 800,000 tons of durian. Recently, China imported 360 tons of durian from Vietnam under the Protocol signed between the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam and the General Administration of Customs of China.

As a fruit export unit, Ms. Ngo Tuong Vy - General Director of Chanh Thu Fruit Export Group Joint Stock Company said that this enterprise will export 20,000-30,000 tons of durian to China in 2023. However, in order for the Vietnamese durian industry to compete with other markets such as Thailand and the Philippines, both businesses and farmers must focus on quality.

Currently, Vietnamese durian has many competitive advantages compared to Thai and Philippine durian. Vietnam's durian output has increased to around 1 million tons, harvested almost all year round, while Thailand and the Philippines only harvest seasonally. In addition, the shorter transportation distance from Vietnam to China is also an advantage that helps Vietnamese durian stay fresh and delicious, and the transportation cost included in the price will be cheaper than competitors' products.

To further accelerate fruit and vegetable exports, a representative of the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association said that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development needs to continue negotiating and signing additional protocols for some officially exported products such as dragon fruit, mango, watermelon, jackfruit, rambutan, etc. The Chinese market needs to open up more for products such as green-skinned grapefruit, fresh coconut, avocado, lemon, pineapple, and star apple. In addition, it is necessary to promote more activities to open up other markets such as Korea, Japan, Australia, the US, etc. to create momentum for the Vietnamese fruit and vegetable industry.

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