Bà Đen custard apples, a speciality of Tây Ninh Province, are processed in the Natani Joint Stock Company before being packed for export. VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Tân

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam achieved a high growth rate of fruit and vegetable exports in the first month of 2022, according to the Việt Nam Fruit and Vegetable Association (Vnfruit).

The fruit and vegetable export value in January reached US$301 million, a sharp increase compared to $260 million in the same period of 2021.

Enterprises maintained their export activities during the Lunar New Year so a volume of vegetables and fruits was still exported normally to the US, EU and Australia, contributing to the impressive export revenue in January.

The EU market is forecast to be a promising market in 2022. Now, the EU market imports a volume of vegetables and fruits worth about $100 billion each year. Therefore, with the advantages from the Europe-Việt Nam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), Việt Nam's fruit and vegetable exports to this market will continue to grow strongly.

In 2022, Việt Nam's fruit and vegetable export turnover to the EU is expected to increase by 10-15 per cent on year, reaching about $200 million.

Many Vietnamese fruit and vegetable products have gradually met the strict requirements of the EU market. In addition, the customs clearance for goods is expected to take place more smoothly in 2022, thanks to the good control of the pandemic. Those would support Việt Nam in promoting exports to this market.

Meanwhile, from February 3 or the third day of the Lunar New Year, many trucks of fruits such as bananas and dragon fruit, were exported to China, according to the association.

Nguyễn Thanh Bình, Vnfruit chairman, said China is the traditional market of Việt Nam with high export volume due to the advantage of being a neighbour. However, in the past two years, the export value to this market decreased because of high competition on the global market.

Therefore, local enterprises need to pay more attention to this market to avoid losing market share due to competition from Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Malaysia, Bình said.

At the same time, it is necessary to promote official exports and improve their capacity to meet new regulations on importing agricultural products and food.

China has also suggested Việt Nam reduce the exports via border gates and promote official exports.

From January 1, 2022, China has continued to tighten conditions on importing agricultural products and measures on managing imported food safety. The requirements from China are gradually approaching the standards of developed countries.

Therefore, local enterprises need to pay attention to strictly complying with China's import regulations to avoid interruption of export activities, Bình said.

In 2021, Việt Nam's fruit and vegetable export value reached $3.55 billion, up 8.6 per cent compared to 2020. Of which, China was the largest export market of Việt Nam's fruit and vegetable products, reaching $1.9 billion, accounting for 53.7 per cent of total export turnover in 2021.

Việt Nam has been diversifying export markets for its fruit and vegetables. The share of fruit and vegetable exports to Europe and the US have increased, while exports to Asia have decreased.

Last year, the export value of vegetables and fruits to the European and American markets had high growth rates. It rose by 17.4 per cent on year to $303 million to Europe; and 29.1 per cent to $271 million to the US.

Despite the impact of COVID-19, in 2021, the export of fresh fruit and nut products decreased while the export of processed products was up. The export value of processed fruit and vegetable products in 2021 accounted for 25.3 per cent of the total export value, up 1.5 percentage points compared to 2020.

The pandemic did not create negative effects on the global processed fruit and vegetable production industry. The supply of fruits and vegetables for processing increased because exports of fresh or frozen products decreased, forcing producers to promote processing.

Vnfruit expects that if the export growth rate is maintained, Việt Nam could reach its export target of vegetables and fruits at $3.8-4 billion this year. VNS