Durian surpassed dragon fruit to become the fruit with the largest export turnover of Vietnam when it grew 10 times in the first 05 months of the year.
The latest statistics from the General Department of Customs show that in 06 months, the export of vegetables and fruits reached 2.75 billion USD, up more than 64% over the same period last year. In particular, durian rose to the top 1 in fruit export turnover in the first 05 months of the year when it reached over 526 million USD, up more than 10 times compared to the same period last year.
Durian leans fruit export turnover.
This result helps durian far outstrip dragon fruit which used to lead the fruit exports for 10 years in a row. In the first 05 months of this year, dragon fruit exports reached over 307 million USD, down 11% over the same period in 2022.
Experts believed that the reason for the sharp increase in durian exports is the increased demand in China. Last year, Vietnam signed a protocol to export durian to this country, so there are more advantages. In addition, Vietnam’s durian prices are more competitive than competitors, so they are increasingly favored.
The rise of durian to become the largest export fruit of Vietnam is considered a “miracle” by industry insiders. Because last year, this fruit only brought 420 million USD in exports, while dragon fruit reached nearly 633 million USD. In previous years, dragon fruit was always an export fruit that brought billions of USD to Vietnam.
In 2021, dragon fruit exports reached 1.031 billion USD while durian exports were less than 178 million USD, accounting for about 17% of the dragon fruit’s turnover. Since 2019, dragon fruit exports have continuously dropped sharply, even last year falling from the top list of Vietnam’s billion-dollar export items.
Mr. Dang Phuc Nguyen, General Secretary of the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association, forecasts that this year, durian will bring about 1.2 billion USD to Vietnam and shall increase to 02 billion USD after 1-2 years.
The rise of durian to become the largest export fruit of Vietnam is considered a “miracle” by industry insiders.
Statistics from the General Department of Customs show that in the first 05 months of this year, durian was exported to 22 countries and territories. China is still the largest export market of Vietnam, accounting for 96.25% of the total turnover of this industry with a value of 477 million USD.
However, Vietnamese durian is outstripped by Thailand. According to China Customs, in the first 05 months of the year, this country imported 535,520 tons, worth 2.66 billion USD, up more than 90% in volume and over 83% in value over the same period. In particular, Thailand is still the largest supplier for China, accounting for nearly 85% of total turnover with a value of nearly 1.8 billion USD.
Currently, Vietnam has about 6,500 planting areas and 1,600 packaging facilities in 33 localities with export codes. In particular, there are 25 products such as dragon fruit, longan, lychee, mango, rambutan, custard apple, lime, grapefruit, mangosteen, watermelon, jackfruit, sweet potato, and durian.
As for durian, at least 293 planting area codes and 115 packaging facility codes have been granted by the General Administration of Chinese Customs (GACC) to qualify for official export to this country. It is expected that 400 more planting area codes and 60 packaging facility codes will be licensed as the Vietnam Administration is working with GACC to agree on an online inspection schedule.
In addition, banana, mango, and jackfruit are the three fruits with the third, fourth, and fifth-largest export turnover of Vietnam with export turnover in the first 05 months of this year reaching 172, 116, and 109 million USD, respectively./.