Vietnam’s fruit industry set itself a target to harvest an annual 9 million tons of fresh fruit and post export revenue of US$350 million in 2010, said Vo Mai, chairwoman of the Vietnam Fruit Association (Vinafruit).
To reach the goal, the industry is going to upgrade post-harvest preservation technology to improve product quality, reduce post-harvest losses, which are estimated to account for up to 30 per cent of the harvest, reduce prices, develop trademarks, build a new export market development strategy and step up trade promotion programs, she said.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development recently approved a five year export development program for the Mekong Delta, Vietnam’s fruit basket, which calls for improvements in both quality and quantity of the region’s specialized produce, including Hoa Loc mangoes, Chin Hoa durian, Nam Roi pomelo and Tam Binh oranges.
Mai also cited statistics from the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization indicating shortages in the world’s supply of fresh fruit, with average annual fresh fruit consumption growing by an estimated 3.6 per cent while production grows at just 2.8 per cent.
“This presents an opportunity for Vietnamese fruit exporters to increase the nation’s export turnover,” Mai said.
Vietnamese fruit growers expect revenue to hit $330 million this year, reversing a recent trend of tailing export.
Vinafruit said that due to limitations in shortage capacity to prolong the shelf life of fresh fruit products, the nation’s fruit industry posted significant declines in the past several years. Export revenue dropped from nearly $330 million in 2001 to only $150 to $180 million over the past five years.
Vietnam currently has around 765,000 hectares of orchard with an annual output of over 6.5 million tons. Of the total, the Mekong Delta region has more than 300,000ha, making it Vietnam’s largest fruit growing area.
Key export products include pineapple, banana, orange, grapefruit, mango, durian, rambutan, dragon fruit, litchi and longan.
VNS
Vietnamese
