Cinnamon brings Vietnam hundreds of millions of dollars each year. This is a woody tree, easy to care for. The area of cinnamon cultivation in Vietnam is up to 180,000 hectares, concentrated in the mountainous provinces of the North and North Central.
The reserve of Vietnamese cinnamon bark is estimated at 900,000–1,200,000 tons. The average harvest is 70,000–80,000 tons/year. Vietnam is the No. 1 exporter of cinnamon in the world, with a turnover of over 292 million USD in 2022.
However, besides domestic production, Vietnam also imports cinnamon from neighboring countries for export, notably from Indonesia and China.
Vietnamese cinnamon has been exported to 100 countries and territories.
According to the Vietnam Pepper Association (VPA), in September 2024, Vietnam imported 216 tons of cinnamon with a value of 0.5 million USD, down 14.6% compared to the last month. Indonesia was the main supplier of cinnamon to Vietnam in the month with 107 tons, accounting for nearly 50% of the market share.
In the first 9 months of the year, cinnamon imports to Vietnam reached 3,448 tons with a turnover of 8.3 million USD, down 74% in volume and 76% in value over the same period in 2023.
Regarding export, after the first 9 months of the year, Vietnam exported 69,350 tons of cinnamon. The total export turnover reached more than 194.2 million USD, up 2.7% in volume but down 2.8% in value over the same period last year.
Vietnam’s export cinnamon production in 2023 accounted for about 34.4% of the export market share in the world, with major consumption markets such as India, China, Bangladesh, and the US. In 2023, Vietnam exported nearly 90,000 tons of cinnamon, with a total export turnover of more than 260 million USD. This was an increase of 14.6% in output but a decrease of 10.7% in value compared to 2022.
The Vietnam Pepper and Spice Association said that the potential of cinnamon material in Vietnam is great because of suitable climate and soil conditions, especially in the northern mountainous provinces and some other places. The demand for spices around the world remains high, not only in the food industry but also in the research and development of applications in the pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and functional food industries. Vietnam has dozens of companies investing in modern cinnamon processing lines, producing ground cinnamon and powdered cinnamon products to meet the requirements of the market.
In addition, with 16 FTAs that Vietnam is participating in, there are many new-generation free agreements such as EVFTA, CPTTP, and CREP that have given Vietnam an advantage over some other countries in terms of tax. This is a favorable condition and opportunity for Vietnamese cinnamon to progress further and further in the international market.
Currently, Vietnamese cinnamon has been exported to nearly 100 countries around the world, accounting for 95% of the market share in India, 36.5% in the US, and 35% in the EU. Vietnam’s cinnamon products have dominated most of the major markets in the world, but the proportion of processed cinnamon exports only accounts for 18.6%, reaching 18,659 tons. 70% is exported to the US, while exports to Europe only account for 12%.
Therefore, in the coming time, Vietnam’s cinnamon industry needs to continue to improve the quality after harvesting and processing to increase exports to difficult markets in Europe and the US.