Durian exports in May reached USD 450 million, an increase of 107% over the previous month and an increase of 34% over the same period last year.

According to statistics from Customs, accumulated in the first 5 months of the year, this item's export reached USD 919 million, an increase of more than 74% over the same period last year. Durian continues to lead the turnover among exported fruits and vegetables. Currently, durian turnover is 3.5 times higher than that of dragon fruit, a fruit that once held the top position in the exported fruit and vegetable group.

According to Mr. Dang Phuc Nguyen, General Secretary of the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association, China is still steadily increasing its purchases of Vietnamese durian. It is estimated that in June, durian exports will reach USD 600 million, bringing the total turnover in the first 6 months of the year to USD 1.5 billion.

According to Mr. Nguyen, Vietnamese durian has an advantage with abundant output, scattered harvests all year round, and not in direct competition with Thai durian. Fast shipping time and reasonable price, especially when frozen durian has better quality control.

However, some recent shipments have been warned of being contaminated with banned substances, according to Mr. Nguyen, affecting the reputation of Vietnamese goods. Therefore, businesses need to increase inspection of banned substances right at the farm and packaging facility to ensure that no shipments contaminated with banned substances are exported.

The Plant Protection Department recommends that localities and businesses need to closely monitor growing area codes and packaging facilities to avoid purchasing goods from unlicensed places, affecting export activities of genuine businesses.

In the first 5 months of the year, fruit and vegetable exports reached over USD 2.65 billion, an increase of 30.9% over the same period in 2023. China is the main market, accounting for 64.5% of total turnover, with a value of nearly USD 1.71 billion, an increase of 32.94%. Other markets such as Korea Republic, the US and Japan also recorded strong growth.

The Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association forecasts that this year's fruit and vegetable exports will continue to grow by 15-20%, with a turnover that could reach USD 7 billion, an increase of USD 0.5-1 billion compared to the plan at the end of last year.

Kylie Nguyen