Vietnamese dragon fruits were introduced at the Fruit Logistica 2024 in Germany in February. Việt Nam earned more than US$1 billion from exporting fruits and vegetables in the first quarter. — VNA/VNS Photo Thu Hằng

Experts have expressed optimism about the future growth of Vietnamese fruit and vegetable exports, buoyed by encouraging signals from the outset of the year, such as surpassing US$1 billion in export value during the first quarter.

According to the General Department of Việt Nam Customs, Việt Nam earned $325.8 million from exporting fruits and vegetables in February, down 33.6 per cent from January, but up 1.4 per cent compared to the same period of 2023.

The figure hit $433 million in March, a rise of nearly 4 per cent year on year, pushing the total export revenue of the product in the first three months of 2024 to $1.25 billion, up 27 per cent year on year. This is the first time the fruit and vegetable export value has exceeded $1 billion right in the first quarter, signalling strong growth for the sector in the future.

Major export markets of Vietnamese fruits and vegetables include China, the Republic of Korea (RoK), the US, Thailand and Japan. Particularly, a surge of 125.9 per cent was seen in shipments to Thailand as of the end of February, to $28.6 million.

Meanwhile, the Import-Export Department under the Ministry of Industry and Trade reported that the export of Vietnamese fruits and vegetables to China in the first two months of this year reached $501.4 million, a rise of 57.2 per cent over the same period of 2023.

Strong growth was also seen in many other markets, including the RoK (52.4 per cent), and Australia (36.2 per cent).

The Vietnam Fruit & Vegetables Association (VinaFruit) held that the soaring fruit and vegetable exports in the first quarter of this year are thanks to the increase in off-season durians. Particularly, the surge in Thailand’s consumption of Vietnamese durians made the country the fourth-largest importer of Vietnamese fruits and vegetables.

Experts predicted that although the Red Sea crisis has greatly affected Việt Nam’s fruit and vegetable shipments to Europe and the US, it may push up those to China and regional countries, especially for durian, coconut, dragon fruit, jackfruit, banana and mango.

They said that this year, the granting of more codes for durian farming regions and packaging facilities will help promote the export of this product. At the same time, coconut is also another promising product that contributes to the growth of Vietnamese fruit and vegetable export revenue.

This year, Việt Nam expects $6.2-6.5 billion in fruit and vegetable export turnover. — VNS