(Anova) - Though Viet Nam has increasingly begun to export fruits to western markets, exporters continue to face many hurdles.

The country produces more than 6 million tonnes of a variety of fruits a year, but it exports just 15 per cent of the output. Only 2.5 per cent of this is fresh fruit, with the rest being processed items.

Dam Quoc Tru, deputy head of the Department of Plant Protection, blamed this low figure on inconsistent quality due to not applying modern technologies in farming, processing and preservation of fruits.

Importing countries, on the other hand, demanded strict conformity to hygiene and food safety standards, he said.

These standards included rules on the presence of germs, pesticides and other residues.

Fruits must also conform to international plant protection and quarantine standards for export under the International Plant Protection Convention and the Global Good Agricultural Practices standard, Tru said.

All fruits needed to be cleaned and labeled with bar codes in order to be exported.

Tru warned against using pesticides to keep away fruit flies, a practice that might leave fruits with high residue levels.

Doctor Nguyen Minh Chau, rector of the Southern Fruit-tree Institute, said it was time for Viet Nam to use technology to improve the productivity and quality of its fruits.

The Government should help the industry grow specific fruits over large areas, and provide loans for improving orchards.

The Son Son Seafood Processing Joint Stock Company, which recently collaborated with the Binh Thuan Province-based Duy Lan Farm to export 8 tonnes of dragonfruit to the US, said this would pave the way for other Vietnamese fruits to enter the US market.

(Source: Viet Nam News)

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