Vietnam exported 302 million USD worth of vegetables and fruits inthe first six months of the year, up 32.5 percent against the sameperiod last year, according to the General Statistics Office.
In June alone, exports reached 50 million USD.
Thedemand for Vietnamese vegetables and fruits in regional markets likeChina and Indonesia has increased sharply this year.
Local experts say this is because the quality of Vietnamese fruits has improved.
The US has allowed the import of rambutan while RoK has opened its doors to Vietnamese dragon fruit.
Recently, a group of experts from New Zealand visited Vietnam toinspect preparations for exporting fresh mango early next year onwards.
Taiwan is expected to resume imports of Vietnamese dragon fruit inthe near future, according to the Plant Protection Department.
Vietnam has exported 750 tonnes of dragon fruit to the US so farthis year, which is 90 percent of the annual figure for last year.
Japan imported 200 tonnes of dragon fruit from Vietnam in thefirst six months of the year, up 70 per cent against the same periodlast year.
Vietnamese exporters have also shipped 40 tonnes of dragon fruits to the RoK this year.
Dragon fruit exports to the US , Japan and the Republic of Koreaare expected to reach a total of 2,600 tonnes this year, double thatof last year.
Besides the increase in volume, fruit exports have also increased in value.
The export price of rambutan fruits to France is now 6.1 USD a kg, up 0.1 USD per kg against the same period last year.
The export price of dried coconut has also increased by 100 USD-180 USD a tonne to 2,500-2,800 USD a tonne.
Exports of fruits and vegetables are estimated to increase strongly inthe third quarter of this year as it is the harvest time of many fruitsand vegetables, according to exporters.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade estimates that export of vegetables and fruits could reach 500-550 million USD this year.
During the first six months of 2011, Vietnam also imported 122million USD of vegetables and fruits, a decline of 5.8 percent againstthe same period last year./.