Binh Thuan dragon fruit promoted in India

Bình Thuận produces more than 600,000 tonnes of dragon fruit annually, making it the country’s largest trading hub of the fruit. — Photo tintucnongnghiep

NEW DELHI – A promotional event was held in New Delhi, India on September 25 to advertise dragon fruit from the south central province of Bình Thuận in an effort to expand ties between agricultural exporters from Việt Nam and India.

Addressing the event, Vietnamese Ambassador to India Tôn Sinh Thanh briefed attendees on Việt Nam and the advantages Bình Thuận holds in tourism and agriculture. He said he expected promotional events to further trade relations between the two countries.

Through the event, the Bình Thuận Department of Industry and Trade hopes to introduce and promote dragon fruit, one of the province’s key earners in India, and provide a platform for businesses from both sides to meet, director of the Bình Thuận Department of Industry and Trade Đỗ Minh Kính said.

During the visit to India, officials from Bình Thuận are also scheduled to meet with the Trade Promotion Council of India and Reliance Retail Limited, a leading retailer. They will attend an international food and beverage trade show in Mumbai and hold another promotional event for dragon fruit at Sofitel Mumbai BKC hotel.

Dragon fruit is an agriculture staple in Việt Nam, with Bình Thuận home to more than 27,000 hectares of orchards.

Dragon fruit dominated Vietnamese fruit exports in the first four months of 2018, with total exports reaching US$427 million, a year-on-year increase of 9 per cent.

According to the General Department of Việt Nam Customs, dragon fruit accounted for 32 per cent of Vietnamese fruit and vegetable exports. Revenue from dragon fruit exports was nearly four times higher than the two fruit exports ranked below it – longan, which had an export value of $121 million, and mangoes, whose export value stood at $104 million.

Bình Thuận produces more than 600,000 tonnes of dragon fruit annually, making it the country’s largest trading hub of the fruit. Its fruit is shipped to more than 16 countries and territories.

As of late 2017, the province boasted more than 9,500 hectares of dragon fruit farms operating under the Vietnamese Good Agricultural Practice (VietGAP) standards. It is striving to add 300 more hectares this year.