Vietnam’s fruit exports rose to US$471m over 2010, according to the Vietnam Fruit & Vegetables Association (Vinafruit), which predicted the country’s fruit exports would hit US$1bn in the next four years.
While year-on-year growth in value was 7 per cent, a report put out by the association said annual growth over the last few years had averaged around 9 per cent.
“In 2010, the country’s fruit export turnover reached US$471m, a year-on-year increase of US$33m, taking the country’s fruit trade surplus to US$150m for the second consecutive year,” the Vinafruit report said.
Vietnamese fruit had established strong beachheads in export markets, the report went on, including in Europe and North America.
“In recent years, Vietnamese fruit has mostly been exported to the EU, the US and mainland China,” Vinafruit chairman Dinh Van Huong told the VNS news agency.
Low production costs and a climate well suited to tropical fruit were the two key advantages the country held over rival suppliers such as Thailand, he added.
“Vietnamese dragon fruit and pineapples have become `a` favourite fruit among consumers across the world,” he said. “The quality is even better than in many other fruit producing nations such as Thailand.
“With the current growth rate, Vietnam’s fruit exports will reach the target of US$1bn in 2015.”
