The fruit and vegetable industry has plenty of room for export in the five largest markets

Vietnam's fruit and vegetable industry needs to continue to strongly shift its product structure towards increasing processed products and reducing exports of fresh products.

Continue the upward momentum

According to the Import-Export Department (Ministry of Industry and Trade), it is estimated that in April 2024, Vietnam's fruit and vegetable exports reached US$520 million, an increase of 10.7 percent compared to March 2024 and an increase of 33.9 percent compared to the previous year. April 2023. In the first four months of 2024, fruit and vegetable exports are estimated to reach U1.8 billion, up 32.1 percent compared to the same period in 2023.

Regarding the market, the proportion of fruit and vegetable exports to Asia accounts for 82.4 percent of the total export value. Of which, fruits and vegetables are mainly exported to China, accounting for 71.8 percent of the total export value. The growth rate of fruit and vegetable products to the Chinese market reached a high level, contributing to promoting good growth of the fruit and vegetable industry in the first quarter of 2024, reaching US$759.4 million, an increase of 32.4 percent compared to the same period in 2023.

In addition, in the first quarter of 2024, fruit and vegetables were also exported to other regions such as Europe, America, Oceania and Africa, however, the export value to these regions only accounted for a small proportion. Therefore, there are still many opportunities for the fruit and vegetable industry to continue expanding its market in the time to come.

Notably, with an average import demand for fruits and vegetables of US$153 billion per year in the period 2019 - 2023, Europe is the largest fruit and vegetable import market in the world (according to data from the International Trade Center). However, the proportion of imports from Vietnam only accounts for 0.22 percent of Europe's total import value.

The Import-Export Department said that the EU is a market with large import demand for fruits and vegetables, but imports from Vietnam are still too low, so the opportunity to increase market share in the EU is huge.

However, this market also requires the world's most rigorous quality. “EU consumers pay attention to food hygiene and safety, standard products, and no pesticide residues before exporting to this market. Accordingly, if Vietnamese fruit and vegetable enterprises can export to the EU market, they will easily be able to export to many other markets," the Import-Export Department assessed.

Improve quality to increase market share

Therefore, in the time to come, if businesses invest more in technology, better preservation techniques, and better quality products, there will be many opportunities to increase market share in the EU market. "In order to export to this market, products must meet European standards and international certificates such as fruits and vegetables must be grown according to GlobalGAP standards," the Import-Export Department informed.

The next largest fruit and vegetable import market is the United States. According to statistics from the US International Trade Commission, the value of US fruit and vegetable imports in 2023 will reach US$52.4 billion, an increase of 3 percent compared to 2022. In the first two months of 2024, the value of US fruit and vegetable imports reached US$10.6 billion, an increase of 9.2 percent compared to the same period in 2023. However, imports from Vietnam only account for 0.66 percent of total import value. For the world's second largest demand for imported fruits and vegetables, the United States is a potential market for fruit and vegetable exporting countries, including Vietnam.

Similarly, although China is a key market for Vietnam's fruit and vegetable exports, the opportunity for the industry to increase market share in the Chinese market is still open. Vietnam's fruit and vegetable market share in the Chinese market has increased sharply from 7.9 percent in 2022 to 13.99 percent in 2023. In the first three months of 2024, China's import value of fruits and vegetables reached US$6.6 billion, an increase of 5.85 percent compared to the same period in 2023. Of which, the import value from Vietnam accounts for 9.4 percent, an increase of 1.1 percentage points over the same period in 2023.

According to the Import and Export Department, the demand for fruit and vegetable consumption in China is very large, but the import value from Vietnam is still low. Therefore, the opportunity for the fruit and vegetable industry to increase market share in the Chinese market is still wide open. In order to promote exports to this market, Vietnamese fruit and vegetable businesses need to ensure and improve quality, strictly comply with regulations on quality and traceability.

In the UK market, the demand for imported fruits and vegetables also tends to increase. According to statistics from the International Trade Center (ITC), in 2023, UK fruit and vegetable imports will reach US$17.9 billion, an increase of 5.9 percent compared to 2022. The British market with nearly 68 million people, high average income and demand for diversity with an Asian community of more than 5.5 million people is a potential for Vietnamese fruit and vegetable exporters to exploit.

Canada is the 5th largest fruit and vegetable import market in the world. The country's import of fruits and vegetables in 2023 will reach US$12.5 billion, an increase of 0.4 compared to 2022. However, fruits and vegetables from Vietnam only account for 0.63 percent of the total import value. According to the Import-Export Department, compared to the market's import demand, the proportion of imported fruit and vegetables from Vietnam is too low. Therefore, there is still a lot of room in the Canadian market for Vietnamese fruit and vegetable exporters to exploit.