Fruit, vegetable exporters in Vietnam enjoy banner year

Vietnam’s fruit and vegetable export value extended its growth streak for a third straight year, reaching a fresh peak in 2025. Riding the sector’s momentum, listed companies such as Antesco and Nafoods Group posted improving results, with many breaking previous profit records.

Despite turbulence in global markets and tightening technical barriers in key destinations, Vietnam’s fruit and vegetable exports delivered a strong performance in 2025, topping $8.5 billion for the first time, up nearly 20% from 2024.

Over 2023-2025, Vietnam’s fruit and vegetable exports posted strong, sustained growth. Export value rose to $7.12 billion in 2024 from $5.6 billion in 2023, following $1.01 billion in 2022.

On the stock market, fruit and vegetable exporters also delivered a bumper Q4/2025 earnings season, posting sharp gains in both revenue and profit.

For example, Nafoods Group (HoSE: NAF), one of Vietnam’s largest passion fruit processors, reported revenue of about VND405.7 billion ($15.63 million) in the quarter, up nearly 23.7% from a year earlier. A 25% increase in cost of goods sold, however, limited gross profit growth to just over 17%, at around VND93 billion ($3.58 million).

Despite financial income of VND7.2 billion ($277,460), about half the year-earlier level, the company sharply cut administrative expenses, down 53.3%, lifting net profit to VND30.6 billion ($1.18 million), up 17.6%.

For full-year 2025, the company posted revenue of VND2.06 trillion ($79.38 million) and net profit of VND146 billion ($5.63 million), up 43.6% and 25.4% from 2024. Both marked the highest since the company listed.

An Giang Fruit-Vegetables Foodstuff JSC, or Antesco (HoSE: ANT), also posted a solid Q4/2025 earnings season, with consolidated revenue rising 20% to VND350 billion ($13.49 million) and net profit jumping 2.4 times to VND30.6 billion ($1.18 million).

For the full year, net revenue climbed 28.2% to VND1.8 trillion ($69.36 million), while net profit surged 75.5% to VND129 billion ($4.97 million) from a year earlier. Basic earnings per share rose 64% to VND5,875 ($0.23), with both revenue and profit setting new records for Antesco.

Beyond strong revenue growth, an improvement in gross margin to 25% from 24.5% helped drive an even sharper rise in net profit.

Similarly, Vietnamese agribusiness major Hoang Anh Gia Lai Group (HAGL) posted net revenue up nearly 29% to over VND7.44 trillion ($286.7 million). Fruit sales contributed VND5.73 trillion ($220.81 million), remaining the largest share, while revenue from goods and products came in at VND1.48 trillion ($57.03 million). Hog farming revenue slumped to just VND209 billion ($8.05 million).

Full-year net profit climbed 2.1 times to more than VND2.24 trillion ($86.32 million), far exceeding the company’s target.

At Hoang Anh Gia Lai Agricultural JSC (HAGL Agrico), a net loss of VND979 billion ($37.72 million) in 2025 marked a fifth straight year in the red. Still, there were signs of improvement, with gross profit swinging from a loss to a positive VND138.7 billion ($5.34 million).

Tien Thinh Group (UPCoM: TT6), a producer of juice products, also stood out, posting net profit of nearly VND6.8 billion ($262,042) in 2025, more than triple the level a year earlier.

Bright outlook

A strong 2025 is expected to provide a key foundation for fruit and vegetable exporters’ stocks to keep gaining momentum. The outlook is underpinned by a confluence of factors, including deeper international integration, natural advantages, shifting consumer trends, supportive policies and market expansion potential. Free-trade agreements and market trends are seen as key tailwinds, given exports account for a sizable share of companies’ revenue.

In the European Union, the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) saw the bloc remove import tariffs on 85.6% of tariff lines as soon as the document entered into force in August 2020, a figure set to climb to 99.2% after seven years. The changes give Vietnamese fruit and vegetable products, particularly processed items, a direct price advantage over competitors from countries that do not have a free-trade agreement with the EU.

In addition, the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) has opened access to potential markets such as Canada, Mexico and Peru, with tariff-elimination schedules covering as much as 97%-100% of tariff lines.

More recently, in November 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order under which some agricultural products were exempted from reciprocal tariffs, including coffee, tropical fruits and fruit juices, because the U.S. cannot produce sufficient supplies domestically. The move is seen as a highly positive signal for Vietnamese agricultural exporters targeting the U.S. market.

At the same time, the Vietnamese government has identified agricultural processing as a strategic priority. Under Decision No. 417/QD-TTg approving the “Plan for Development of the Fruit and Vegetable Processing Industry for 2021–2030,” issued by the Prime Minister on March 22, 2021, the sector is envisioned as a large-scale manufacturing industry with strong international competitiveness. The plan targets export turnover of $8 billion to $10 billion by 2030, with processed products accounting for at least 30% of the total.

Still, the sector faces a range of challenges. Vietnam’s fruit and vegetable exports remain heavily concentrated in just two markets - China and the US - leaving producers exposed to risks stemming from shifts in import and logistics policies.

At the same time, shifts in trade policy across other major markets are creating fresh headwinds. In April 2025, the U.S.-Vietnam’s second-largest trading partner after China - imposed tariffs of as much as 46% on Vietnamese exports, a rate later cut to 20% following several rounds of negotiations. Even so, the fruit and vegetable sector is still banking on a zero-tariff outcome under an adjustment order signed by President Trump on November 14, 2025.

In Europe, meanwhile, Vietnamese produce continues to face stringent technical barriers, including maximum residue limits and phytosanitary requirements.

At the same time, rising demand for processed fruit and vegetable products, such as dried, frozen, canned goods and juices, presents both challenges and opportunities for Vietnam.

The global dried-fruit market is forecast to reach $16.55 billion by 2030, while the organic fruit and vegetable market is expected to expand at an annual rate of 5.9% in 2025-2029.

In Vietnam, however, the export mix remains heavily skewed toward fresh produce. Fresh and lightly processed items account for about 79% of total export value, with deeply processed products making up only a small share. Overall, just 12%-17% of the country’s annual output of roughly 28 million tons is preserved or processed.