Vietnamese fruit targets the Chinese market and formulates new policies to catch up with Thailand

 

Vietnam's fruit and vegetable exports peaked at US$3.
7 billion in 2019, surpassing even rice exports in the same period
.
Over the next two years, the figure declined, reaching $3.
26 billion in 2020 and $3.
55 billion
in 2021.
Over the same time, Thailand's fruit and vegetable exports rose steadily, from US$3.
76 billion in 2019 to over US$4.
2 billion in 2020 to US$5.
3 billion
in 2021.
Feeling pressure on Thailand's gradual erosion of market share by Thailand, Vietnam's fruit and vegetable industry workers are under pressure to think about the reasons behind it and how to deal with it in the future
.

 

It is reported that Vietnam's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is investigating this trend and formulating new policies to revive the country's fruit and vegetable export strength
.

 

At present, Vietnam exports fruits
to 60 countries, including China.
Over the past three years, China's strict anti-epidemic policies have had a significant impact
on Vietnam's fruit and vegetable trade.
Vietnam has had to look more to other overseas markets, with significant growth in exports to the United States, the European Union and Japan
.
However, China remains the world's largest fruit importer and one of
Vietnam's most important export markets.
So far, 11 Vietnamese fruits have officially entered the Chinese market, including mango, dragon fruit, banana, longan, lychee, watermelon, rambutan, jackfruit, mangosteen, passion fruit and durian
.

 

Fruit marketing and branding

 

As we all know, Chinese consumers choose products
based on brands.
For example, the Chinese market is more familiar
with durian from Thailand and Malaysia.
For Vietnamese durian, which has only recently obtained access, it is especially important
to build its own brand.
To this end, industry experts advised Vietnam to set up a trade promotion agency in China to help brand its agricultural products
.

 

Operate with integrity

 

China is no longer an easy market
to enter.
As early as many years ago, China began to implement high standards of imported fruit management
.
For example, in 2018, Chinese customs authorities made the planting area and packing facility code on the phytosanitary certificate one of
the necessary conditions for export.
According to Vietnam's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, after four years of evaluation and review, Vietnamese durian was officially allowed to enter the Chinese market
.
This year, the department gave some companies a stern warning that a similar case involving Vietnamese mangoes in 2020 must not be repeated
.
At that time, Vietnamese mango enterprises illegally used error codes to achieve export and were seized
by the Chinese side.
Durian exports should learn relevant lessons and strictly implement China's requirements
.
In addition, Vietnamese officials stressed the importance of
ensuring long-term transparency of export activities.

 

Market research and business education

 

Vietnam's Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Le Minh Huan, said that many Vietnamese fruit producers lack understanding of market trends and passively sell their products
without understanding the real demand of the market.
He drew an analogy between Vietnamese and Thai fruit distributors: when Beijing's wholesale markets open in the morning, Thai traders tend to be able to quickly grasp prices and sell their products efficiently, while Vietnamese traders are always slow to act because they do not have a clear understanding of product prices and market demand
.

 

Minister Lai also noted that Thailand has invested heavily in market research and development, and many Thai universities and research institutes are focusing on long-term strategies
.
In his view, Vietnam should also start forming its own think tank to determine its development goals
in the coming years and decades.

 

In addition, Vietnam needs to build a new agricultural model that is closely linked to producers and has access to the latest market intelligence, and improving the competitiveness of fruit enterprises should be one of the core objectives of
the agricultural industry.

 

In addition to the above measures, the upgrading of production technology should also be emphasized
.
Vietnam's current postharvest equipment can only store durian for three to four days, which limits transportation options and thus excludes cost-competitive sea freight
.