Vietnam sets sights on billion-dollar fruit trade

THE HANOI TIMES — Vietnam could generate tens of billions of US dollars annually from its passion fruit, bananas, pineapples, and coconuts.

According to industry experts, the country’s favorable climate, robust production capacity, and growing global demand give it a competitive edge in expanding fruit exports. However, to fully capitalize on this opportunity, significant investment in high-tech agriculture and modernized farming practices is essential to boost productivity and meet international quality standards.

Local insiders said these four fruits are emerging as Vietnam’s new flagship agricultural exports, earning the country close to $700 million per year collectively.

Maintaining consistent quality standards

According to Nguyen Manh Hung, Chairman of Nafoods Group, Vietnam’s passion fruit industry, which began from scratch a decade ago, now has billion-dollar export potential, particularly if the domestic sector is well planned and China opens up to imports of fresh fruit.

Vietnam’s passion fruit has gained global appeal, with 5,000–7,000 tons exported annually to Europe. Meanwhile, the global demand for passion fruit purée and concentrate is around 30,000 tons per year for each, growing at a rate of 6%-7%.

"However, the potential is even greater as China’s winter season could create massive demand for fresh fruit once the market fully opens," Hung said.

Vietnam’s purple passion fruit yields twice as much as South America’s, with lower production costs and higher export prices. Nafoods’ premium variety earns more than $38,000 per hectare.

At Unifarm, Chairman Pham Quoc Liem is pursuing a high-tech approach to banana cultivation. “We’re cultivating bananas based on standardized practices throughout the entire process, from breeding and farming to harvesting and traceability,” he said.

Currently, banana farming yields an average of only $2,400 per hectare, far below its potential. The company believes the sector could reach $4 billion in export value, but this would require yields per hectare to increase to at least $20,000.

"It's ambitious, but achievable if we embrace large-scale production, strict quality control, and technological innovation," Liem said. 

Environmental and health standards also play a growing role, especially for demanding markets like the EU and Japan, he added.

Meanwhile, Vo Quan Huy, Director of Huy Long An Agriculture JSC, highlighted the need to diversify banana production to overcome growing competition in the fresh produce market. Currently, the majority of Vietnam's raw banana exports go to China, South Korea, Japan, and the Middle East.

“Processed banana products, such as dried bananas, banana wine, and green banana flour, are still produced on a small scale,” he said, citing a lack of large-scale investment and government support for fine processing.

Huy urged policymakers to prioritize investment in the banana processing industry and to facilitate Vietnamese businesses' access to capital, technology, and markets.

“We must also leverage the economic value of banana byproducts, which are often discarded and can harm the environment,” he said.

A technological leap for four key fruits

Currently, Vietnam has about 420,000 hectares of banana, passion fruit, pineapple, and coconut farms, yielding over 6.3 million tons annually. However, combined exports of these fruits remain modest at over $1.7 billion.

"A 'technological revolution' is needed to elevate these fruits into billion-dollar export categories, potentially as soon as 2026 or 2027," Tran Thanh Nam, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, said at the seminar "Enhancing Competitiveness and Export of High-Value Fruits" on July 18 in Ho Chi Minh City.

Nam also stressed the role of regional governments in managing growing zones under the government's Decree No. 145/2025/ND-CP, which assigns 17 specific responsibilities to local authorities regarding cultivation zones and area codes.

To ensure a stable supply chain, Nam said businesses should work closely with cooperatives to establish traceable, input-to-output linkages to boost competitiveness and access to international markets.