Durian exports: Transparency in codes to preserve the billion-dollar market

To successfully export Vietnamese durian to markets in general and the Chinese market in particular, requires transparency and clarity in growing area codes.

Code Transparency: A Key to Retaining the Largest Market

In early November, the Department of Investigation Police on Crimes of Corruption, Economy, and Smuggling (C03 - Ministry of Public Security ) issued a decision to prosecute 17 defendants related to violations in durian export activities . The prosecution of 17 defendants for buying and selling growing area codes has received special attention from the public because this is the first time a case of code fraud has been prosecuted. At the same time, it shows the determination of the authorities in making the durian export process to China transparent to protect the billion-dollar market.

The strong intervention of the authorities shows the determination to clean up the market and maintain the reputation of Vietnamese goods.

Code transparency is an important condition for exporting durian to China.

It is worth noting that the warnings from China are not new. Thailand has also had many of its growing area codes suspended. Their tightening is a natural reflex of a large market, not a challenge specific to Vietnam.

Standardizing the value chain

With the current growth rate, in an interview with the Industry and Trade Newspaper, Mr. Dang Phuc Nguyen - General Secretary of the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association said that the target of durian exports reaching 3.5 billion USD in 2025 is completely feasible. But to go far, transparency must become the foundation, not a movement. Accordingly, solutions to handle violations are only the first step. To build a sustainable durian industry, it is necessary to establish a strict control system from root to tip.

However, according to experts, the transparency of the origin of exported durians still shows a core limitation: the current monitoring mechanism does not cover the entire chain. The certification unit only examines the samples sent, it cannot control the entire shipment. If the enterprise “mixes” goods from outside, all inspection mechanisms are considered ineffective. That proves why violations can exist for a long time.

Therefore, monitoring is not only to handle violations when they occur, but also to prevent them from the beginning. To achieve this, the responsibility of each actor in the chain must be raised. Specifically, farmers need to proactively build standardized growing area codes, keep electronic diaries and comply with cultivation processes. Enterprises must absolutely comply with regulations, not seek to circumvent regulations or assist in fraud. Certification units need to increase their professional capacity and professional ethics. Management agencies must have a system of periodic inspections, a unified database and a quick warning process.

In addition, to protect the Vietnamese durian export brand, the Dak Lak Durian Association has recently proposed three key, fundamental solutions for a modern production and export chain. These are establishing a synchronous control chain with model growing areas, electronic logs and input residue control. Building an independent laboratory, randomly sampling before packaging, creating a "final checkpoint". Applying traceability using QR codes to each durian, helping to make the entire journey from garden to export transparent.

These solutions are not only to meet China's demands, but also pave the way for Vietnamese durian to reach other markets that are experiencing impressive growth.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment said that the export turnover of fruits and vegetables in October 2025 reached 961 million USD, down from 1.313 billion USD in September 2025 but still significantly higher than the same period in October 2024 (519 million USD). In general, in the first 10 months of 2025, Vietnam's export turnover reached more than 7 billion USD, up 15.1% over the same period in 2024 and almost equal to the total turnover of the whole year 2024 (7.12 billion USD).

By the end of October 2025, durian exports had officially surpassed the record of 3.2 billion USD for the whole year of 2024. Compared to the same period last year, the turnover of this item increased by 12.3%, significantly higher than the 2.85 billion USD recorded in the first 10 months of 2024.

In 2026, durian exports are forecast to be even brighter when the global economy recovers, demand for many industries increases, including the agricultural sector in general and durian in particular. In that picture, durian has the opportunity to continue to lead the fruit and vegetable industry, but only when the story of growing area codes is strictly managed and completely "clean".

Recently, the General Administration of Customs of China issued Decree 280 replacing Order 248, regulating the registration of imported food production facilities, effective from June 1, 2026. New regulations are continuously issued, showing that the billion-dollar market is increasingly tightening regulations on imported agricultural products, including durian.

To still take advantage of the billion-dollar market, in the long term, we want to build a national brand in the global "game", besides constantly updating regulations from your side, durians exported to China in particular and exported abroad must grow from clean growing area codes, clean processes and absolute prestige.

In addition to China, Vietnam's durian exports have begun to expand to many new markets such as Hong Kong (China), Taiwan (China), Papua New Guinea, the US, Malaysia, etc.

Bao Ngoc

Source: https://congthuong.vn/xuat-khau-sau-rieng-minh-bach-ma-so-de-bao-toan-thi-truong-ty-do-432080.html