Forum finds solutions to consume dragon fruit
08 January 2022, VN: On the morning of January 6, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development held an online forum connecting dragon fruit production and consumption.
In addition to the two main bridge points in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, the forum also had the participation of large dragon fruit producing provinces such as Binh Thuan, Long An, Tien Giang and businesses.
Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Tran Thanh Nam emphasized that businesses and producers must change their mindset to not depend too much on one market. Therefore, products must meet the standards of markets. This is the consistent view of the Ministry and the Government.
However, the mindset of the producers and the consumers has not been consistent. Therefore, localities need to organize connections for producers and consumers. Currently, the demand for goods during the Lunar New Year is increasing, so localities also need to strengthen connections with retailers in the domestic market.
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“Besides, localities must also step up the granting of planting area codes. As the Plant Protection Department has assigned rights to localities, the Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development need to have specific plans to soon issue the planting area code. Not only the Chinese market but also the markets that import agricultural products have requested this issue”, said Deputy Minister Tran Thanh Nam.
Deputy Director of the Crop Production Department Le Thanh Tung said that Vietnam’s dragon fruit output is about 1.4 million tons/year, but it is not evenly distributed. Specifically, about 300,000 tons in the first quarter, about 150,000 tons in the second quarter, about 400,000 tons in the third quarter and about 500,000 tons in the fourth quarter. Thus, the first and fourth quarters concentrated about 60% of output.
In the first 3 months of 2022, the whole country has about 300,000 tons of dragon fruit that need to be consumed and thrived in large-scale specialized farming areas, concentrated in 3 provinces of Binh Thuan, Long An and Tien Giang. These three localities alone have accounted for 240.00 tons, so it is necessary to find solutions to support localities in consumption.
