More Vietnamese fruits to enter choosy markets
Vietnam is expected to export more fruits to a number of selective markets including the United States, Australia, Japan, New Zealand and Taiwan as it has reached agreements on technical measures.
Hoang Trung, deputy head of the Plant Protection Department under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, said the agency has gone through numerous negotiations and technical procedures for Vietnamese fruits to be exported to more markets.
The department has negotiated with Japan and met all necessary requirements for exporting Vietnamese mango this September.
A group of New Zealand specialists will arrive in Vietnam next month for the last round of negotiations over the re-opening of that market for Vietnamese rambutan. Meanwhile, Taiwan (China) has issued final export conditions for thanh long (dragon fruit) to enter that market.
Trung said Vietnamese officials have been in talks with their Australian counterparts for a resumption of mango exports to Australia.
Vietnam has completed technical procedures for shipping mango and star apple to the US.
Trung noted that the Vietnamese side has completed all procedures as required by the US but the US has not allowed import of the two fruits.
Data of the agriculture ministry showed agro-forestry-fishery product exports last month stood at US$2.4 billion, down over 10% compared to July. In contrast, the export of fruits and vegetables surged 40.8% in August over the previous month.
Trung said China remained the largest importer of Vietnam’s farm products and that agricultural export turnover from the northern market kept rising in the first eight months of the year.
Major export products shipped to China included litchi, longan and dragon fruit.
For example, in the first eight months Vietnam exported to China 700,000 tonnes of dragon fruit, equivalent to last year’s volume. Litchi and longan shipments in the period were 150,000 tonnes and 10,000 tonnes.