This underground gold has brought more than 1 trillion VND to Vietnam in the first 9 months of the year. Two types of tubers that are very familiar and widely sold in markets in Vietnam but are also valuable export items are ginger and turmeric.
According to preliminary statistics from the Vietnam Pepper Association (VPA), in the first 9 months of the year, Vietnam exported 21,841 tons of ginger, turmeric, and spices, with a total turnover of nearly 45 million USD. This was a decrease of 28.3% in volume but a strong increase of 9.9% in turnover.
The main export markets for ginger, turmeric, and spices from Vietnam are India, Bangladesh, and Indonesia, respectively.
Ginger has brought in 45 million USD in 9 months of the year.
Earlier in 2023, the export of ginger, turmeric, and some other spices reached 34,976 tons with an export value of 49.3 million USD, a significant increase of 222.4% compared to 2022. Currently, there are 30 VPA members involved in exporting ginger and turmeric, along with about 80 other companies outside of VPA.
Ginger is a common item for Vietnamese people, but it is highly hunted and valued abroad. Ky Son district (Nghe An province) is considered the center of Vietnam’s ginger. Thanks to the suitable climate and soil conditions, Ky Son ginger has superior quality and a particularly rich flavor compared to ginger from other places. This is a native ginger type.
Vietnamese ginger is favored by many markets due to its fragrant aroma, high essential oil content, and suitability for cooking dishes and extracting essential oils.
Turmeric is in the same spice group as ginger. This spice originates from India. Although it is popular in Vietnam, it is a rare spice that is hard to find worldwide, only available in a few tropical countries such as India, China, Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar, and Nigeria.
In Vietnam, turmeric can be found in many places, from coastal plains to high mountains over 1500 meters, and even in some areas, it grows wild in rice fields and gardens.
Turmeric is a common spice in Vietnam.
Vietnam is one of the countries with the largest area of turmeric cultivation in the world, with over 50,000 hectares (by 2021). Vietnamese turmeric has good quality, with a high curcumin content of 3-5%.
According to the Vietnamese trade office in Australia, India, etc., the potential for exporting ginger from Vietnam to these markets is very large. Besides its fragrant and delicious quality, Vietnamese ginger is cheaper than domestic products in other countries.
To enhance the status of spice products in general and turmeric in particular, the VPA recommends that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development should propose specific solutions for each type of crop and establish appropriate mechanisms to timely meet market demands. Additionally, the Ministry needs to address the issue of chemical residues in herbicides and pesticides in products such as cinnamon, chili, ginger, and turmeric.
It is expected that the total export value of Vietnam’s spice products could reach around 2 billion USD by 2025, with an export volume of approximately 500,000 tons.