The northern province of Bac Giang late last week delivered its first shipment of Yen The late-ripening longan to Australia this year.

At the same time, the People’s Committee of Yen The District also presented a decision recognising VietGap-standard longan area to Hao Thanh cooperative.

Bac Giang is now home to about 3,400ha of longans with a total output of nearly 20,000 tonnes, mostly in Luc Ngan, Luc Nam, Yen The and Lang Giang districts. Of which, late-ripening longan covers over 600ha.

The province has so far granted 47 codes for 514ha with 4,000 tonnes for export to China, and 52.92 ha with some 450 tonnes for export to Australia.

The provincial Department of Cultivation and Plant Protection collected five samples to check pesticide residues and reported that all meet requirements for export. It also called on firms to unite together to export longans from Yen The and Luc Nam districts.

In the near future, the province will direct expanding VietGAP, GlobalGAP and organic longan farms, promoting trade and connecting firms together to boost exports. — VNS