Australia has taken another step forward for its horticulture industry by announcing it has secured access to export plums to Vietnam in the coming season, in addition to its current exports of peaches and nectarines. This project is part of a two-way market access agreement for horticultural produce, supplying Australian plums to Vietnam and Vietnamese passionfruit to Australia.
Australia’s agricultural, fisheries, and forestry exports to Vietnam reached AUD 3.7 billion (approximately USD 2.5 billion) in 2023-2024, with increasing trade in stone fruit, further solidifying Australia’s trade relationship with Vietnam—the sixth-largest export market for the Oceanic country.
The above agreement supports the agriculture industry’s goal of growing towards a AUD 100 billion (USD 67 billion) industry and the AUD 20 billion (USD 13.4 billion) target for the Australian horticulture industry by 2030.
Vietnam and Australia are currently in favorable negotiations regarding the export of Australian blueberries to Vietnam and Vietnamese grapefruit to Australia. Australia affirms that Vietnam is an important market diversification for its exporters and a focus in the “Investment: Australia’s Strategy for Southeast Asia to 2040” program.
Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries, and Forestry, Julie Collins, remarked that this new market access is a significant milestone for the stone fruit industry and the Australia-Vietnam trade relationship. Facilitating mutual market access outcomes reflects the strong bilateral relationship between Australia and Vietnam and boosts the Australian agriculture industry’s ability to capitalize on export opportunities.
The administration of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is focused on opening doors for Australia’s agriculture industry, and this is a positive step towards achieving that goal while also providing another key market to diversify trade.
Meanwhile, Minister for Trade and Tourism, Don Farrell, affirmed that boosting Australia’s trade with Southeast Asia, including Vietnam, is a top priority for the government. Enhancing trade with Vietnam means more jobs and better wages for workers in Australia’s horticulture industry.
Passionfruit becomes the fifth fruit to be exported directly to Australia
Earlier, the Plant Protection Department of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, in collaboration with the Australian Embassy in Vietnam, organized a ceremony to announce the export of Vietnamese passionfruit to Australia and the import of Australian plums. Passionfruit becomes the fifth fruit to be exported directly to Australia, after mango, lychee, longan, and dragon fruit.
Huynh Tan Dat, Director of the Plant Protection Department, said that Vietnam has potential and strengths in tropical fruits. Vietnamese fruits are currently exported to more than 60 countries and territories, with passionfruit being exported to 20 countries in various forms, such as fresh, frozen, and juice.
The passionfruit cultivation area exceeds 12,000 hectares and is growing, mainly in the northern mountainous region. Meanwhile, the Central Highlands provinces have also shown interest in expanding their passionfruit cultivation area.
In recent years, Vietnam has focused on improving the quality of passionfruit production, adopting a chain production approach, and ensuring traceability, primarily for the yellow and purple passionfruit varieties.
Moving forward, the Plant Protection Department will guide farmers and local authorities to produce according to the requirements of the importing countries, further promoting the advantages of Vietnamese passionfruit.
Andrew Goledzinowski, Australian Ambassador to Vietnam, remarked that the trade relationship in agricultural produce, including fruits, between the two countries has been continuously developing. Many high-quality fruits from each country are now available in the other’s market. Today’s achievements are based on mutual trust and joint efforts.
Commenting on Vietnamese passionfruit, Ambassador Goledzinowski praised its delicious taste.
In the coming period, the two countries will continue to finalize the remaining steps to enable the export of Vietnamese grapefruit and Australian blueberries to their respective markets.
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