Having spent billions of dollars buying from Vietnam, Chinese traders are also looking for opportunities to grow the "king" fruit in Laos.

The weekly report on the fruit and vegetable industry by the Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agricultural and Rural Development shows that Chinese durian importers are looking for investment opportunities to grow durian in Laos, while spending billions of dollars to buy durian from Vietnam.

According to a report by the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association, Vietnam's fruit and vegetable export turnover in the first 10 months of 2024 is estimated to reach 6.4 billion USD - an unprecedented figure.

Of the 6.4 billion fruits and vegetables Vietnam brought back to the country, durian continued to be the largest contributor, bringing in more than 3 billion USD in 10 months, accounting for nearly 50% of total export turnover.

Although the main durian season ended in October, Vietnam still has off-season goods, helping this year's durian export turnover reach the 3.5 billion USD mark - a figure rarely achieved by any other fruit.

Meanwhile, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, by the end of September 2024, Vietnam's durian output reached 984,800 tons, a sharp increase of 16.6% over the same period last year. It is estimated that the entire year's durian output could reach over 1.2 million tons. In addition to serving domestic consumption, a large amount of durian is exported to China, Thailand and other markets.

Vietnam's durian exports in the first 10 months of 2024 reached over 3 billion USD, mainly to the Chinese market.

In the context of durian exports continuing to set impressive records, the weekly report on the fruit and vegetable industry of the Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agricultural and Rural Development (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) stated a noteworthy piece of information. That is, recently, Chinese agricultural product importers had a meeting with the Lao Agricultural Enterprise Association and representatives of Lao durian growers to explore opportunities to penetrate the Chinese market.

With the help of the China-Laos Railway, Lao durians are expected to be delivered to Chinese consumers within 48 hours of picking in the future.

The Lao National News Agency reported that the Lao Agricultural Business Association currently has 170 farms with a total area of ​​20,000 hectares. More than 10,000 durian trees have begun to bear fruit, yielding about 900 tons of durian. Durian growers have successfully crossed Malaysian durian varieties with local Lao durian varieties to produce high-quality durian. It is expected that by 2029, the number of durian trees produced by the association will reach 270,000 trees, producing 24,300 tons of durian, worth more than 155.5 million USD.

The Import-Export Department (Ministry of Industry and Trade) also issued warnings about the competitive pressure of many Vietnamese fruit and vegetable products in the export market, including durian.

Accordingly, the Import-Export Department forecasts that Vietnam's fruit and vegetable exports will continue to grow in the last months of the year due to seasonal factors. In addition, Vietnam's fruit and vegetables are increasingly asserting their position in markets such as the US, China, Korea, etc. In particular, Chinese consumers increasingly favor Vietnamese durian, banana, lychee, longan, jackfruit, mango, and watermelon, thanks to the quality and characteristic flavor of tropical fruits. However, Vietnam's fruit is facing considerable competition in the export market.

"Typically, in the Chinese market, many of Vietnam's main export fruits in China are rapidly expanding in area. Therefore, the fruit and vegetable industry needs to create and bring the true values ​​of Vietnamese fruits to Chinese consumers. Product quality, unique flavors and food safety are the core values ​​that need to be focused on developing and maintaining," the Import-Export Department said.

Source: https://baodaknong.vn/da-chi-hang-ty-do-mua-cua-viet-nam-thuong-nhan-trung-quoc-con-tim-co-hoi-trong-loai-trai-cay-vua-o-lao-233290.html