Source: Vietnambiz.vn
The number of rows of dragon fruit stuck at the border gate is in great danger
Recently, China’s tightening control over border crossing activities to prevent the spread of diseases has caused a blockage in the export of agricultural products in general and dragon fruit in particular.
Discussing with the writer, Mr. Dang Phuc Nguyen, General Secretary of the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association, said that the chorus of dragon fruit exports to China being blocked in the border area happens every year, but this year it is more serious because of the influence by disease.
China is pursuing the goal of “Zero COVID” (that is, no cases of COVID-19 infection) so authorities in provinces, especially border areas, strictly control travel.
“If a locality causes an outbreak of COVID-19, the leader in that locality will be prosecuted or even lost his position. Therefore, provinces have tightened border control activities to reduce the risk of disease outbreaks,” Nguyen said.
The biggest risk right now is that the number of goods is being blocked at the border gate because if they can’t be exported, businesses will have to suffer great damage because of damaged or sold-out fruit.
“If the goods cannot be exported, the risk of having to sell off at low prices, even feeding the cows is very high,” Nguyen said.
According to some businesses, about 20 days ago, the price of dragon fruit is fluctuating around 15,000 – 20,000 VND/kg.
Share with Thanh Nien Magazine A representative of Binh Thuan Dragon Fruit Association said that currently, there are about 500 containers of dragon fruits (equivalent to about 8,000 tons) that are having difficulty in clearing customs at border gates with China, at risk of damage.
Mr. Huynh Canh, owner of a business specializing in exporting dragon fruits and Vice Chairman of Binh Thuan Dragon Fruit Association said: “Peng Tuong side said that on this New Year’s Day, they have 14 days off. Thus, the ability to clear goods early in general and dragon fruit in particular is very difficult. That leads to spoiled fruit from lying here for too long.”
According to Mr. Canh, it will take another month to complete the procedures for the amount of container trucks in stock at the border.
However, from the perspective of growers, although the export situation to China is facing difficulties, Mr. Nguyen said that he is not too worried about the risk that the price of dragon fruit in the garden will drop because the ripe goods have been purchased and purchased. export.
The remaining goods on the tree are mainly for the Lunar New Year, which is consumed strongly both domestically and for export. In addition, currently is the time of off-season dragon fruit, the Chinese side has no goods. Meanwhile, the demand for dragon fruit to worship in both countries is high, so consumption becomes easier.
“The State should create conditions in promoting strong domestic consumption, especially in traditional market channels, e-commerce products, and supermarkets. Currently, traditional markets in some localities are still under strict control, making work Consumption becomes more difficult”, Mr. Nguyen said.
High risk with dragon fruit when depending too much on the Chinese market
This is not the first time that Vietnamese dragon fruit has had to “fall apart” because of policy changes in the Chinese market.
In recent years, every time during the main crop season from June to August, headlines like “Price of dragon fruit drop dramatically” “Price of dragon fruit is only 3,000 – 4,000 VND/kg because China stopped importing”… reappeared in the newspapers.
This is the consequence of relying too much on one market. According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, China is still the main market for Vietnam’s dragon fruit with a proportion of about 90%.
Unlike in the past when it depended only on the supply in Vietnam, China is also developing this plant. According to the Import-Export Department, because Chinese people especially like dragon fruit, in recent years, the area planted to dragon fruit in China has increased more than 10 times.
By the end of 2020, China’s dragon fruit growing area is about 35,555 hectares, equivalent to the dragon fruit growing area of Vietnam.
Therefore, in recent years, when the dragon fruit harvest season of the two countries coincides (the end of the second quarter – the beginning of the third quarter), it becomes more difficult to export goods to China. They prioritize consuming locally grown dragon fruit first.
In the domestic market, the Vietnamese dragon fruit crop coincides with other fruits such as lychee, rambutan, durian, etc., so consumers have more choices.
It seems that Vietnam can only export smoothly to China in the off-season (at the end of the year and near the Lunar New Year). But this year, even in the off-season, the COVID-19 epidemic also robbed the industry of opportunities to make money. Businesses and gardeners had to “hold their breath” to monitor the clearance situation in the next harvest near the Lunar New Year.
The Import-Export Department warned that China’s growing area of dragon fruit will make it increasingly difficult to export this item in the near future.
According to Mr. Nguyen, one of the solutions to overcome this situation is to focus on deep processing such as drying or plasticizing, canning… However, whether sold fresh or processed, it must be protected. food safety. If the thong is not safe, the factory will not dare to import it for processing.
