Vietnam exports first batch of lychee under EVFTA

The first batch of Thanh Ha lychees was officially exported to Europe under the EU–Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) on June 7.

The lychee shipment will reach European consumers in 4-5 days

At the ceremony to export the first batch of lychee to the European Union, Vu Ba Phu, director of the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, said that in the next few days, lychee will be on store shelves of the Czech Republic, which has a large market and the largest Vietnamese community in the EU. This result comes from efforts to connect and promote consumption in the 2021 litchi crop.

Currently, the EU, a potential market of about 430 million people, is the fourth export market for Vietnamese vegetables and fruits. This advantage, as well as the import tax exemption and reduction as committed in the EVFTA, will help to increase the competitiveness of Vietnamese fruits compared to markets that do not have an FTA with the EU such as Thailand, China, Malaysia, and Indonesia.

It is expected that the export shipment will reach European consumers in the next 4-5 days. Apart from Thanh Ha lychee, a batch of Luc Ngan lychee (Bac Giang) will also set out to conquer this community of 27 fastidious countries in the next week.

Chung Tri Phong, general director of Pacific Foods, the company is in charge of exporting the lychee, revealed that the company has about three years of understanding and negotiating the procedures for the export of lychee to the EU.

“Right from the beginning of the season, the production management system and monitoring software of the litchi area must be checked by import partners. We also cooperate with many partners to preliminarily process and preserve lychees, ensuring the best condition this fruit reaches consumers in Europe,” shared Phong.

Le Ba Linh, chairman of the Board of Directors of Pacific Foods said that Vietnam's agricultural products have great potential, especially tropical fruits such as lychee, dragon fruit, jackfruit, mango, longan, and grapefruit. He said that the EU market always wants to experience products from Vietnam as part of the speciality of the lower Mekong region. After litchi, this company will continue exporting jackfruit, dragon fruit, and rice to the EU.

Hai Duong province currently grows lychee on more than 9,000 hectares, of which Thanh Ha district has more than 3,300ha and Chi Linh town has more than 3,500ha with a total output of about 55,000 tonnes. The province currently has 45 litchi areas with a total area of 450ha planted according to GlobalGAP standards and 6,300ha planted according to VietGAP standards. Up to now, 1,000ha have been certified with VietGAP, GlobalGAP, and 8,000ha have been granted export planting area codes.