Coconut fever, businesses are 'red-eyed' looking to buy raw materials

Compared to the same period in 2024, the price of raw desiccated coconut increased by 40% and compared to the first quarter of 2023, it increased by 120%, the highest ever.

In Ben Tre, the price of organically grown dry coconut ranges from 150,000 to 160,000 VND/dozen (12 fruits), while conventionally grown dry coconut costs from 130,000 to 145,000 VND/dozen.

Fresh coconut prices have also increased sharply, with an increase of 110% compared to the same period last year. Last year, the price of fresh coconuts in the garden was only about 5,000 VND/fruit, but now it has reached 11,000 VND/kg.

High coconut prices make coconut growers excited (Photo: Nguyen Lien)

Coconut prices increase sharply

According to Mr. Cao Ba Dang Khoa, Vice President and General Secretary of the Vietnam Coconut Association, one of the important reasons for the sharp increase in coconut prices is that Indonesia, the world's largest coconut producing country, has decided to raise the export tax on coconuts and plans to stop exporting raw coconuts in the future.

This has caused a sharp decrease in the supply of coconuts on the international market, creating opportunities for other countries such as Vietnam to increase exports and push up coconut prices.

In addition, the increase in demand from factories in Thailand and China has also increased the price of domestic coconuts. These factories are rushing to buy Vietnamese coconuts to supplement domestic production. At the border gates in Dong Thap and An Giang, dozens of containers of coconuts are exported every day.

Chinese corporations’ coconut water and frozen coconut milk processing plants are now operating stably and expanding many production facilities. Fierce competition for raw materials has pushed up raw coconut prices, making it difficult for domestic factories to purchase raw materials.

Although farmers benefit from high prices, factories cannot keep up with purchasing demand, causing difficulties in production and processing.

Coconut industry's export turnover is over 1 billion USD.

Mr. Tran Van Duc, General Director of Ben Tre Coconut Investment Joint Stock Company (Beinco) shared that to meet production needs, each day the enterprise will have to consume 100 tons of fresh coconut meat, equivalent to about 300,000 coconuts.

With the current high price of raw coconut, production costs have increased by almost 100%. The price of coconut meat was 18,000 VND/kg last year, but has now increased to 35,000 VND/kg.

Meanwhile, Ms. Le Thi Be - Director of Minh Tam COCONUT Vietnam Company Limited said that to have enough raw materials for production, businesses must actively seek supply sources from many localities other than Ben Tre, such as Tra Vinh, Tien Giang and Vinh Long.

However, due to scarce supply, coconut prices are constantly increasing, causing businesses to face many difficulties in maintaining production.

Building a coconut raw material supply chain

To stabilize domestic coconut prices, the Vietnam Coconut Association has issued a plan to build a coconut supply chain, helping 2,500 households in the Mekong Delta connect with businesses, banks and export markets.

The pilot program in 5 provinces (Tien Giang, Ben Tre, Vinh Long, Tra Vinh, Soc Trang) will last 6 months, focusing on purchasing, deep processing, financial support and digital payment applications, aiming to increase product value, limit raw exports and stabilize raw material sources.

After a six-month pilot, the program will be expanded to 20,000 households in the Eastern, Western and Central provinces, creating a solid foundation for a sustainable coconut supply chain.

The Vietnam Coconut Association, banks and businesses will cooperate closely to increase export value, bringing the Vietnamese coconut industry into the million-dollar value chain, bringing long-term benefits to people and businesses.

Mr. Cao Ba Dang Khoa said: “The program also hopes to create a map of raw coconut resources in each region, so that investors know that Vietnam's raw coconut resources are not only in Ben Tre but also in 25 other provinces and cities.”

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