Fresh Vietnamese fruits reach Australian market

                Australian businesses have been licensed to import Vietnamese mangoes

The first batch of Fresh Vietnamese mangoes has overcome strict Australian quarantine barriers and entered the NP supermarket system in the city of Perth of Western Australia on September 19. Following mangoes, Vietnamese dragon fruit will be licensed to enter the Australian market, contributing to increasing Vietnamese fruit exports to this difficult-to-please market.

King of green mangoes

According to the Vietnamese trade office in Australia, Vietnamese mangoes have been advertised as ‘First Time in Perth: King of Green Mangoes’ and are sold at a very high price, AUD14.99 (VND255,000) per kg. These green mangoes were grown in Dong Thap Province’s Cao Lanh District and exported to Australia via Agricare Vietnam. Weighing 500-650g each, these mangoes were grown under VietGAP standards and meet Australian requirements.

As Australian mangoes are in season, this market currently may not have high demand for Vietnamese mangoes. There will be more opportunities for Vietnamese mangoes to be present in the Australian market from February. The Western Australian market currently imports mangoes mostly from Mexico, the Vietnamese trade office in Australia said.

Agricare Vietnam exported this first batch of Vietnamese mangoes to Australia for the purpose of exploring the demand of this market. It was also the first company to export Fresh Vietnamese litchis to Australia. In the near future, Agricare Vietnam will export ripe mangoes (Cat Hoa Loc and Cat Chu mangoes) and pink mangoes to this market.

According to the Vietnamese trade office in Australia, Australian businesses have been officially licensed to import Vietnamese mangoes following seven years of negotiations. This would bring opportunities for Vietnamese mangoes to be exported to one of the world’s most demanding markets. Mangoes are among fruit types which sell well in the Australian market. The Australian mango sector has developed a marketing campaign aimed at increasing mango consumption for everyday meals and using mangoes for preparing different kinds of food and beverage.

Apart from domestic supplies, Australia currently imports a considerable volume of mangoes from Haiti, India, Mexico, Pakistan, and the Philippines. Vietnam will join the list of mango exporters to Australia in the near future. As mango varieties grown in these countries remain unfamiliar to Australian consumers, there will be opportunities for Vietnamese mangoes to penetrate the Australian market. Notably, Australia does not restrict the import of processed mangoes in forms such as juice, ground or canned mangoes.

Nguyen Hoang Thuy, Head of the Vietnamese trade office in Australia, said to promote the presence of Vietnamese mangoes in the Australian market, the Vietnamese Embassy and trade office in Australia have organized meetings on the sidelines of the recent Australia International Food Fair, aiming to boost the sale of Vietnamese mangoes in Asian markets and major Australian supermarkets. The Vietnamese trade office and business association in Australia have signed a memorandum of understanding on support for the sale of Vietnamese agricultural products and fresh fruit in this market.

The Suoi Lon Mango Cooperative in Xuan Hung Commune, Xuan Loc District, Dong Nai Province, has signed agreements with two Australian partners to export about 18 tonnes of mangoes per day to Australia for sale in supermarkets and wholesale markets. The Vietnamese trade office in Australia is promoting business connections to increase mango exports to this market.

The first dragon fruit exporter to Australia

Nguyen Hoang Thuy added that the Australian Department of Agriculture and Water Resources recently drafted a report on fresh Vietnamese dragon fruit.

The report proposed granting licenses for Australian businesses to import Fresh Vietnamese dragon fruit from all areas where this kind of tree is grown for commercial purposes, on the condition that the fruit meets Australian bio-safety requirements.

The Australian Department of Agriculture and Water Resources prepared this report based on their knowledge about fruit diseases and technical discussions with the Plant Protection Department under the Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, as well as the results of field surveys to dragon fruit production areas in Vietnam, which were carried out by experts from the Australian government this June.

A delegation of officials from the Australian Department of Agriculture and Water Resources visited Ho Chi Minh City, Long An, Tien Giang, and some other provinces in late June to survey and examine the dragon fruit production process in Vietnam.

The report was posted on September 13 to collect the opinions of concerned parties within 60 days, latest by November 14. The Australian government will then consider these opinions carefully before finalizing the report. Under their schedule, the Australian government will complete risk assessment of the fresh Vietnamese dragon fruit later this year.

If everything goes on schedule, Vietnam will become the first country to export dragon fruit to Autralia in early 2017.

        Dragon fruit will soon be added to the list of Vietnamese exports to Australia

Australia is a potential market for Vietnamese fruit producers. More than 10 tonnes of litchis grown in Luc Ngan District (Bac Giang Province) were exported to Australia in late June 2016. Apart from litchis, Vietnam has been licensed to export three other kinds of fruit to Australia.

Phuong Lan / ven