Dragon Fruit from Vietnam: FTA with the European Union

The main season for dragon fruits in Vietnam is between April and September, however, the fruit can be produced and exported year-round. The production volume has been increasing drastically in the last few years as more farmers switch from producing rice to other tropical fruits such as dragon fruits. Tropical fruits such as dragon fruit are much more profitable than rice. Although the harvest area of fruits accounts for around 10% of the area of rice, export revenue from fruits was around 4.2 billion USD whereas the revenue from rice exports was around 2.3 billion USD.

In 2018, over 80% of Vietnamese dragon fruits were exported to China. However, Europe and the US are also important target destinations for Vietnamese dragon fruit exporters. In June 2019, Vietnam and the European Union signed a free trade agreement, which will remove tariffs on 99% of European imports from Vietnam. As a result, Vietnamese agricultural exports to the EU, including dragon fruits, are expected to increase significantly stating in the second half of 2019.

In fact, the main markets for Agro Green, a Vietnamese dragon fruit exporter, were European countries such as the Netherlands, France, and Switzerland. However, the company is also planning on exporting approximately 50 tons of dragon fruits to China in the 4th quarter of 2019. As a result, the company’s dragon fruit export is expected to increase by 30% from 2018.