Vietnam to begin dragon fruit exports to Australia soon
Vietnamese dragon fruit growers have long sought to enter the Australian market and now the door is almost open. Australia sent a working team to Vietnam in June last year to review biosecurity and import requirements for fresh dragon fruit. Australian agricultural officials have recently released the final report on the quality of fresh dragon fruit from Vietnam, the Australian embassy in Hanoi said in a press release on Friday.
“The Australian government will continue working with their Vietnamese counterparts in the next steps to give market access for fresh dragon fruit imports from Vietnam,” said Ambassador Craig Chittick.
Vietnam exported more than 1 million tons of dragon fruit last year. As the fruit can stay fresh up to 40 days, it is mainly shipped to foreign markets by sea, at transport costs ranging from 2 to 3 U.S. cents per kilogram. Low transport costs make Vietnamese fresh dragon fruit more competitive in Australia.
Consumers in markets such as the U.S, Australia, Canada and Japan have been more interested in Vietnamese tropical fruits in recent years which has led to lychees being exported to Australia and the United States.
source: e.vnexpress.net
