HCMC – Vietnam’s durian shipments to China are forecast to fetch over US$1 billion in all of this year, said Dang Phuc Nguyen, general secretary of the Vietnam Vegetable and Fruit Association.

Since Vietnam started formal durian exports to China in September last year, some US$400 million worth of Vietnamese durian has been shipped to the latter, indicating a possibility that US$1 billion in durian sales to the northern neighbor can be achieved this year.

Vietnamese durian is a sought-after fruit in China, Nguyen said at a press briefing held on on February 15 to introduce HortEx Vietnam 2023 in HCMC, adding Vietnam exports durian to many markets, including Australia, the United States, Japan, Taiwan and China.

China now accounts for a majroity of Vietnam’s durian exports.

Vietnam has advantages over Thailand in shipping durian to China as it takes Vietnamese exporters only 1.5 days to ship the commodity to the northern market while Thailand spends 7-10 days doing it.

Nguyen told The Saigon Times that Vietnam’s veggie and fruit sales to China account for over 50% of the country’s total vegetable and fruit export revenue. Among the Vietnamese fruits sold in China, dragon fruit is dominant, while durian is a favourite newcomer on the Chinese market.

This year, the International Exhibition and Conference for Horticultural and Floricultural Production and Processing Technology in Vietnam, or HortEx Vietnam, is slated for March 1 at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center in District 7. The three-day event will feature over 200 exhibitors from 25 countries and territories, with over 7,000 local and international visitors expected to come.