Vietnam Jan-July fruit imports rise 12.7% to $1.2 bln

Vietnam, which spans both tropical and temperate climate zones, increased its January-July fruit imports by 12.7% year-on-year to $1.2 billion, with apples, pears, pomegranates, grapes and plums leading the fray, an industry insider says.

Dang Phuc Nguyen, the general secretary of the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association, explained that these imported fruits are either not grown domestically or produced in very limited quantities within the country.

The fruit imports were mainly from China ($397 million, up 27%), the U.S. (about $206 million, up 14%) and Australia (about $57 million, up 76.6%), followed by South Korea, Japan, and Thailand.

Nguyen said fruit imports are increasing to meet domestic market demand for fruits that are not produced in the country, particularly on a large scale.

Meanwhile, fruit exports in the first seven months of the year topped $3.8 billion, up 23.4% year-on-year.

“So Vietnam is still having a trade surplus of over $2.5 billion in the fruit and vegetable sector in the past seven months. Among Vietnam's fruit and vegetable exports, durian was still a staple with an export value of more than $1 billion”, Nguyen said.

Meanwhile, Vietnam’s fruit and vegetable export turnover in 2023 reached a record $5.69 billion, an increase of nearly 70% over the previous year.

China was the biggest buyer of Vietnamese fruits and vegetables last year at more than $3.7 billion, up 149% year-on-year and more than $2 billion over the 2022 figure, according to Vietnam's customs data.