AN INTRODUCTION TO VIETNAM FRUIT MARKET

Vietnam fruit market is incredibly diverse and vibrant, reflecting the country’s rich agricultural heritage and favorable climate for growing a wide variety of fruits. Fruit is nature’s delicious gift, offering a wide range of flavors, textures, and nutrients. Whether you enjoy them fresh, dried, or juiced, Vietnam can be your supplier for different fruit types. This article will bring you to the fruit world in Vietnam.

Vietnam fruit market at a glance

Vietnam is a developing country and one of the fastest growing economies in the world. Although aiming for economic growth based on industry and services, the agricultural sector still plays an important role in the Vietnamese economy. In the agricultural sector, the fruit industry has great potential in both production and export, because Vietnam is a tropical country with favorable land and climate conditions suitable for the production of many types of fruit.

The country is one of a few in the world that produces many types of tropical fruits with large yields. Famous specialty fruits known around the world include grapefruit, dragon fruit, star apple, mango, durian, rambutan, longan, lychee, watermelon,…

According to the Department of Crop Production, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Vietnam’s fruit growing area currently has about 1.2 million hectares with about 50 types of fruit, including temperate, subtropical and tropical fruits. Among them, tropical fruits have great advantages in export.

In addition to growing fresh fruit, Vietnam has developed a fruit processing industry with the desire to preserve fruit longer after harvest, meeting export demand. Currently, Vietnam has 150 fruit and vegetable processing factories with modern technology with a processing capacity of nearly 1.1 million tons/year. The potential to develop Vietnam’s fruit processing industry is still very large when the amount of fruit used for processing is still small.

The export turnover of vegetables, fruits and spices in Vietnam in recent years has always had positive growth. Vietnam’s fruit and vegetable export turnover hit a new record in reaching nearly 5.6 billion USD in 2023, exceeding the plan by 40% and increasing nearly 66% over the same period of 2022. It also leads the agriculture product group, surpassing key crops such as rice, cashew nuts, coffee, and cassava (tapioca).

The largest importers of Vietnamese fruit and vegetables are China, the US, the Republic of Korea, Japan, Thailand, the Netherlands, Taiwan (China), Australia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Russia. Besides Vietnam’s traditional and largest export market, China (accounting for 65%), Vietnamese fruits and vegetables have also penetrated many large, demanding markets such as the US, Korea, Japan, Netherlands… with high export value.

Vietnam Fruits Production

Vietnam is one of major suppliers in the global fruit market, exporting a variety of tropical fruits to countries around the world. Popular fruits that Vietnam exports include: Durian, Passaion fruit, Mango, Pineapple, Coconut and Seedless Lime.

Vietnam Fruit Growing Regions & Outputs

1. Durian

According to statistics from the Department of Crop Production (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development), in 2023, Vietnam’s durian growing area is estimated to reach 131,000 hectares, an increase of nearly 20% compared to 2022. Of which, the largest area is in the Central Highlands. accounting for 40.4%, followed by the Mekong Delta accounting for 34.6%, the Southeast region accounting for 19.4% and the South Central Coast accounting for 5.6%. The Central Highlands region has surpassed the Mekong Delta, becoming the largest durian producing region in the country.

2. Passion Fruits

Passion fruit is being grown mainly in the Central Highlands, Nghe An, Hoa Binh and Son La with an area of about 5,000 hectares. Among them, Gia Lai is a prominent growing area for passion fruit in the Central Highlands. Specifically, Gia Lai currently has nearly 4,500 hectares of passion fruit, the average yield is about 36.2 tons/ha, output is about 150 thousand tons/year. According to the Project for developing vegetable, flower and fruit tree production to 2030, with a vision to 2040, the passion fruit area planned for Gia Lai by 2025 is about 20,000 hectares and by 2030 is about 25,000 – 30,000 hectares.

3. Mango

Mango is a popular fruit in Vietnam and 50% of mango area is grown in the Southern Vietnam. Among them, Dong Thap province is one of the provinces with the largest mango growing area.

• Total area: 9,300 hectares (18% of the Mekong Delta region).
• Total output: 93,000 tons (Mekong Delta: 400,000 tons.

Besides Dong Thap, Tien Giang is also a province with the top mango output in the country. There are two main mango varieties grown in these provinces: Cat Chu mango (sweet and sour taste, thin skin) and Hoa Loc mango (sweet taste, thick skin).

Cat Hoa Loc mango is a famous mango originating from Tien Giang. Mangoes have flexible, smooth flesh, thick flesh, low fiber, soft, very refreshing to eat, and have a unique, seductive flavor. Each mango is very large, heavy to hold and can weigh from 450 – 600g. Hoa Loc mangoes are popular with Southern Vietnam people and have been exported to demanding and potential markets such as France, the US, Canada, Australia, etc.

4. Pineapple

In Vietnam, pineapple is grown from North to South, adapting to many types of soil, especially growing well in the alkaline soil of the Mekong Delta. Therefore, pineapples are concentrated in the southern provinces. Provinces with large pineapple growing areas in the South include: Tien Giang, Kien Giang, Hau Giang, Long An,… In the North, there are Thanh Hoa, Ninh Binh, Tuyen Giang, Phu Tho. The Central region has Nghe An, Quang Nam, and Binh Dinh, growing this type.

Pineapple varieties that are widely grown include MD2, Queen and Canyene. Vietnam ranked the 10th largest pineapple production in the world (533,384 tons) in 2011 and 12th (654,801 tons) in 2019.

5. Coconut

Vietnam’s coconut tree area ranks 7th among 93 coconut growing countries in the world. According to the assessment of the International Coconut Community (ICC), Vietnamese coconuts have the highest productivity and quality in the world. According to data from the Department of Crop Production, in 2019, the Mekong Delta accounted for nearly 80% of the country’s coconut area with an area of about 130,000 hectares. Provinces with large coconut growing areas are: Ben Tre , Tra Vinh, Tien Giang, Vinh Long.

Particularly in Ben Tre, according to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of the province, by the end of 2022, the province’s total coconut area is more than 78,000 hectares, the fruit-bearing area is more than 71,400 hectares, with an estimated total output of about 688 million coconuts. /year; Of which the drinking coconut area is about 15,850 hectares, accounting for 20.3%; The province’s organic coconut area reaches 17,200 hectares. By 2025, it is estimated to reach more than 20,000 hectares of organic coconut, concentrated in industrial coconut production areas.

6. Seedless lime

The seedless lemon tree (Citrus latifolia Tanaka) was introduced to Vietnam in 1994 and then developed a lot in Long An province. The tree has a wide adaptability and can grow in many different ecological regions from mountainous lands to alluvial-rich soils. The seedless lemon growing area in Long An is considered the largest in the country with a concentrated area of over 10,000 hectares.

Currently, this area has more than 6,950 hectares of lemon growing, of which the fruit-bearing area is more than 6,600 hectares, mainly seedless lemons with an average yield of 160 quintals/hectare, output of about 105,600 tons/year.

7. Dragon fruit

Vietnam is currently one of the world’s leading countries in dragon fruit area and output; Ranks second in the world in export turnover. Vietnamese dragon fruit has held a significant market share in Asia, especially China, Europe and the US. Currently, dragon fruit trees are grown most in provinces such as: Binh Thuan accounts for 50.73% of the country’s area, followed by Tien Giang with 16.42%, Long An with 15.15% and the remaining is in other local regions.

The two main varieties of dragon fruit in Vietnam are red-flesh dragon fruit and white-flesh dragon fruit. Calculated within three provinces: Binh Thuan, Long An, Tien Giang, the dragon fruit variety structure is about 55% red-skinned with white flesh, about 40% red-skinned and red-fleshed, and 5% other varieties.

Vietnam Fruit Seasons

In Vietnam, the availability of fruits varies throughout the year due to seasonal changes in weather and climate. Here’s a general overview of the seasonal availability of some popular fruits in Vietnam:

Vietnam Fruit Seasons. Source: Viego Global

Which Vietnam Fruits are Popular and Their Specifications?

Vietnam Durian Fruit

Vietnam Fresh Durian

• Variety: Ri6, Monthong
• Weight: 1.8 – 5 kg / fruit
• Packaging: Carton box

Vietnam Frozen Durian Pulp

• Colour: Natural colour of Fresh Durian
• Variety: Ri6, Monthong
• Pulp Type: With Seed or Seedless

Vietnam Coconut

Young Coconut

• Brix: 7 – 10%
• Size: 0.8 – 1.2kg/fruit
• Ingredients 100% coconut

Mature Coconut 

• Mature level: 9 – 10 months old, no broken or damaged
• Weight: 0.7 – 1.2kg/fruit and smaller: 500-650g
• Size: 15-20cm

Processed Mango (IQF Mango)

• Colour: Natural colour of Fresh Mango
• Odor and flavor: Typical of Fresh Mango
• Cutting Size: Chunk 20mm, Dice 10mm, Dice 15mm, Slice, Half cut
• Size: 15x15mm (±2mm)
• Brix: Min 13
• Salmonelle: None
• Foreign bodies: None
• E.Coli: Negative
• Pesticide residue: Not detectted

Vietnam Passion Fruits

Fresh Passion Fruits

• Appearance: oval-shaped, purple colour, many black seeds
• Protein: 1.2 – 2.4 %
• Sugar: 15 – 18 %
• Vitamin C: 70mg %
• Essential oil
• Mineral salt Carotenoid (mainly beta-carotene)
• Packing: carton box 10 & 12 KG/ box ; foam box 25 kg / box as buyer’s request.

Process IQF Passion Fruits

• Colour: Natural color of Passion fruits
• Odor and flavor: Typical of Purple Fresh Passion Fruit
• Shape: Tidbit, Chunk, Dices,…
• Brix: Min 13
• Seed Content: 20 – 50 Seeds per 10g
• Broken seeds: Max 5 seeds per 10g
• E.Coli: Negative
• Pesticide residue: Not detected

Vietnam Pineapple

Fresh Pineapple

• Size: 1kg/pineapple
• Brix: 13% min
• Packing: size 6-9 pineapples per carton 12kg
• Temperature: 45ºF, 8ºC

Vietnam IQF Pineapple 

• Colour: Natural colour of Fresh Pineapple
• Variety: MD2, Queen
• Cutting Size: Chunk 20mm, Tidbit 1/12, 1/8, Slice
• Storage conditions: Deep-frozen, at minus 18 Celsius degrees or below

Vietnam Seedless lime

• Style: Fresh fruit
• Size: 10 – 20 pieces per kg
• Color: Natural green
• Quality: 1st class, without skin defect, natural green color
• Packing: 5/ 4/ 7/ 7.5/ 8/ 8.5/ 9/ 10 kg/carton
• Storage: Temperature 5 Celsius degrees
• Shelf life: 4 – 6 weeks

Vietnam Fresh Dragon Fruit

• Type: Fresh fruit
• Variety: Red-fleshed dragon fruit
• Origin: Vietnam
• Packing: 15kgs/carton

Viego Global – Your trusted sourcing partner in Vietnam

Given that Vietnam has plenty of Fruit Suppliers in Vietnam, it is not easy to find a trustworthy supplier to work with, however. Let’s answer the questions below before conducting your sourcing:

• Are you going to import fruits from Vietnam?
• Are you finding a Vietnamese trusted supplier for different types of fruits?
• Are you finding Vietnamese fruit source of supply with high quality and competitive price?

If your answer is yes for all, please comment below so Viego Global can help you out easily. Being present at the fruit-growing location and the economic centre of Vietnam, Viego Global can greatly help you professionally source and execute order, providing maximum benefits to our clients in terms of delivering a wide range of products at the best competitive pricing. Please contact us HERE for further support about Vietnam Fruit Market!