The elimination of technical barriers and the rapid international integration of Vietnam, is opening up opportunities for the country to export more tropical fruit. The Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association forecast that fruit and vegetable exports could reach US$2 billion in 2016 from $1.49 billion last year, fuelled by the opening of many strict markets such as Japan, the EU and the US.
In 2015, Vietnam exported 3 million tonnes of lychees and 100 tonnes of longans to the US for the first time. In addition, 1,200 tonnes of dragon fruits and 10.6 tonnes of mangoes were exported to Japan last year, while Australia allowed the import of 16 batches of lychees, or 28 tonnes from Vietnam.
New Zealand was also checking the cultivation of rambutan and considering imports of this fruit.
Hoang Trung, the deputy director of the Plant Protection Department said that the department is conducting the necessary procedures and tackling difficulties for the exports of star apples, longan, lychee and rambutan to Korea, and dragon fruit to Taiwan.
Around 40 kinds of Vietnamese fruits and vegetables were exported to 40 countries and territories, including major export markets such as mainland China, Japan, South Korea, and the US, in addition to Malaysia and Thailand last year.
The Plant Protection Department said that the quarantine on exported fruits, especially those to strict markets such as dragon fruits, longan, rambutan and mango, would be enhanced to ensure quality.
The quarantine procedures were simplified, however, to create advantageous conditions for exporters, the department said.
There were more than 100 fruit and vegetable fruit processing plants in the country with a combined capacity of 300,000 tonnes per year.
Regarding imported products, the department set up a criteria for 13 kinds of fruits from seven countries, such as apple and pear from Holland, grape, orange, mandarin from Australia, and orange, lemon and mandarin from Egypt.
Source: vietnamnews.vn
