According to statistics from the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association, dragon fruit exports have unexpectedly returned to the top position in the fruit and vegetable sector with a turnover of nearly 155 million USD in the first quarter, dethroning durian as the king of fruits.
The main export market for dragon fruit remains China, with a value of 106 million USD, a decrease of 14% compared to the same period in 2024. In second place is India with a turnover of 14.5 million USD, an increase of 3% compared to the same period last year. In 5th place is Thailand with 3.7 million USD, an increase of 12%. Canada ranks 7th with 2.2 million USD, an increase of 10%.
A few years ago, dragon fruit brought the highest export value to the vegetable and fruit industry. In 2018, the highest record was nearly 1.3 billion USD, but it gradually decreased and lost the 1 billion USD export mark in 2022. In the first half of 2024, the export value of dragon fruit only reached 292 million USD, a decrease of 14.3% compared to the same period in 2023.
Dragon fruit exports brought in hundreds of millions of USD in the first 3 months of the year.
Currently, dragon fruit is primarily grown in provinces such as Binh Thuan, which accounts for 50.73% of the country’s area, followed by Tien Giang with 16.42% and Long An with 15.15%. According to data from the General Statistics Office, by 2022, Vietnam’s dragon fruit production reached over 1.28 million tons.
From 2010 to 2020, the area of dragon fruit cultivation grew at a rate of 15.1% per year, reaching its peak at 65,500 hectares in 2020. But since 2020, due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and China’s Zero-Covid policy, the area in Vietnam has decreased by more than 9,000 hectares compared to 2020 and now stands at less than 60,000 hectares.
One of the biggest reasons for the significant decline in dragon fruit is that the key market, China, has now planted this crop on a very large scale. Recently, China announced the cultivation of 67,000 hectares of dragon fruit, with a production of 1.6 million tons, surpassing Vietnam in both area and production. Because China has rapidly increased its scale in terms of area and production, the demand for imports is limited.
But in the world, this fruit is considered a “superfruit” due to the health benefits it offers, such as helping to combat chronic diseases, fighting cancer cells, improving the digestive system, or controlling diabetes.
In the context of fierce competition in the global agricultural market, the race to export dragon fruit between Vietnam and Thailand in 2025 continues to be the center of attention. Vietnam, with a dragon fruit production of about 1.4 million tons per year, is leading in terms of production scale, especially in provinces like Binh Thuan, Long An, and Tien Giang.
Thailand, despite having lower production, has strength in quality, packaging, and market strategy to enter demanding markets like the EU and the US. Thai dragon fruit, especially the yellow-skinned variety, is highly regarded for its sweetness and crunchiness, meeting the strict food safety requirements.
Looking at the current market trends, many people expect dragon fruit to return to the billion-dollar club. However, Mr. Dang Phuc Nguyen, General Secretary of the VINAFRUIT, said that this is unlikely to happen. Because China, the main market for dragon fruit, will gradually reduce its consumption and imports until September, as domestic products will dominate.