Vietnam increases export of major agricultural products

 

According to statistics from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam, in the first 10 months of 2021, the export value of Vietnam’s agricultural, forestry and aquatic products to the European market accounted for 11.
4% of the market share, involving multiple products such as aquatic products, rice, fruits,
etc.
This is not a big number compared to the Asian market (42.
8% market share) and the Americas market (30% market share)
.
In addition to being affected by the new crown pneumonia epidemic, the reason is that Europe is the most demanding market in the world for food quality and safety and hygiene
.

 

Huge growth opportunity

 

Xie Huang Ling, Director of the European-European Market Department of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam, said that the EU is the main export market for Vietnam's agricultural and aquatic products
.
However, the export volume and export value of most products are still low, which is not commensurate with the Vietnam-EU market trade cooperation relationship and market size
.

 

Statistics show that in terms of aquatic product exports, the EU is Vietnam's fourth largest export market.
From 2015 to the end of 2019, the export value remained above US$1 billion per year
.
However, exports of this product to the European market have declined in recent years due to the European Commission's "yellow card" warning for caught seafood
.

 

　　Regarding fruits and vegetables, the EU is a huge import market, accounting for 45%-50% of the global import volume of fruits and vegetables
.
At present, the EU is Vietnam's fourth largest export market of vegetables and fruits, but Vietnam only ranks 25th in the EU's vegetable and fruit supply market, with a market share of only about 1%
.
Nguyen Dinh Song, General Manager of Vietnam Vina T&T Group Company, said that Vietnam's fruits and vegetables exported to the EU market are still mainly fresh and roughly processed products
.
There are very few deep-processed products, and the added value is not high
.
Therefore, at present, Vietnam's market share of fruits and vegetables in the EU is too small, while the market demand is very large
.
As a result, companies are always determined to continuously improve quality and fully ensure EU requirements and standards in order to achieve rapid growth
.
Especially after the Vietnam-EU Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) came into effect, the EU promised to immediately cancel 94% of the 547 tax items on fruits and vegetables and their products, opening the door for Vietnamese fruits and vegetables, including rambutan, dragon fruit, Many products such as pineapple, longan and lychee are the advantageous products of Vietnam
.

 

　　In addition to aquatic products and fruits, the EU is also the largest consumer market for Vietnam's coffee, accounting for nearly 40% of Vietnam's total exports and 37% of its total exports
.
In the past five years, Vietnam’s coffee exports to the EU have remained in the range of US$1.
2 billion to US$1.
4 billion annually
.
With the advantages of the EVFTA agreement, Vietnamese coffee products will be able to increase exports to the EU market in the coming period
.
In addition, Buon Ma Thuot coffee is one of the 39 Vietnamese GIs that the EU has committed to protect since the EVFTA came into effect
.

 

　　On the other hand, the European-European Market Department of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam said that due to the impact of the new crown pneumonia epidemic, the supply of goods in the EU market has been interrupted, so importers in the EU must consider moderate sales and store goods for the end of the year, especially agricultural products
.
This is a big opportunity that is difficult to repeat in history, so Vietnamese export enterprises should seize it
.

 

　　Understand the market to add value

 

　　One of the long-standing limitations of Vietnamese agriculture is that the industry has not yet focused on researching and understanding market needs when it comes to selling what it owns
.
Therefore, as of now, the situation of "harvest and price drop" is still happening in many places
.
The same goes for export activity, where many agricultural products for sale have yet to attract partners due to a lack of market information, especially in markets such as Europe where quality, design and safety are critical
.
Nguyen Duc Thanh, Commercial Counselor of the Vietnamese embassy in Italy, said that Vietnamese enterprises should meet the needs of consumers, not only in terms of taste, but also in packaging, food safety, labor and environmental standards
.
For example, companies are proud of exporting honey to Europe that their products meet the standards, but they do not know that Europe, especially Italy and France, are honey-producing countries with a long history and have very strict standards when considering how to raise bees and whether to protect them.
; or like when selling processed coffee, Vietnamese often sell instant coffee with many flavors, while Europeans prefer a lighter, more natural flavor
.
Regarding the demand in the Italian market, Mr.
Nguyen Duc Thanh, Commercial Counselor of the Vietnamese Embassy in Italy, said that aquatic products, tea, coffee and other products can be further developed in the Italian market
.
There is still a lot of room for rice products, as Italy is a country that imports a lot of rice in the EU
.
In 2019, Italy imported about 221,000 tons of rice (equivalent to US$174 million) from countries around the world
.
Among them, the country imported only about 7,000 tons of rice from Vietnam (equivalent to 5 million US dollars), that is, Vietnam only accounted for 3.
1% of the Italian rice import market share
.
Meanwhile, rice imports from Pakistan were 70,000 tonnes (equivalent to US$64 million), Thailand 19,000 tonnes (equivalent to US$21 million) and India 16,000 tonnes (US$18 million)
.

 

　　In addition to quality issues that meet consumer needs, non-product factors such as food safety, environmental protection, and labor have always been the focus of the EU market
.

 

　　Vu Trinh, Commercial Counselor of the Vietnamese Embassy in Spain, said that ensuring food safety and hygiene has always been the top concern of the Spanish market
.
Enterprises exporting tuna, shrimp, squid and other aquatic products to the Spanish market should pay attention to fully meet the technical standards of food safety and hygiene from fishing, preservation, processing, transportation, etc.
, so as not to violate the current regulations on food safety and hygiene
.
In addition, Spain is also increasingly concerned about the social responsibility of companies in the production and export of goods
.
Accordingly, employers need to commit to ensuring standard working conditions for their employees, as well as ensuring safe production in terms of personnel and the environment, especially without the use of forced or child labor
.
Spain and even the EU attach importance to the elements of corporate social responsibility as binding conditions in conducting transactions, signing agreements and purchasing goods
.
This is an issue that Vietnamese agricultural exporters need to pay close attention to
.

 

　　It can be seen that market demand is an important factor in formulating export and processing plans for agricultural products, especially for large-scale and high-quality markets such as the European Union
.
Based on the understanding of this requirement, the relevant departments have been closely coordinating recently, holding many seminars to connect Vietnamese agricultural export enterprises with the region
.
Accordingly, the commercial counselors of Vietnamese embassies in various countries, Vietnamese export enterprises, foreign import enterprises, and functional agencies jointly discussed issues such as supply and demand, legal factors in export activities, consumer psychology, and local culture.
Have a comprehensive understanding of the market you are interested in and manufacture according to these parameters in order to most effectively conquer the potential and valuable EU market
.
(Finish)