Vietnam to start importing Chilean cherries

Chilés agriculture ministry announced that Vietnam is to start receiving Chilean cherry imports. In return, Chile approved the import of Vietnamese grapefruit.

According to Rodrigo Yañez, Chile’s Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs, “the opening of the market for cherries comes at a good time: at the beginning of the export season and the celebration of the lunar new year in Vietnam. This is great news, as greater trade openness and market diversification can help a small economy like Chile’s to continue growing during a global context of uncertainty”.

According to Ronald Bown, President of ASOEX (the association of fruit exporters of Chile), “Last year, the country exported 228,586 tons of cherries. Of this amount, about 90% went to China. Diversifying our exports within Asia, as in the case of Vietnam, is therefore important since it is also a market that consumes high amounts of imported fruits, especially those of high quality, as is the case with our cherries,” he said.

The export of Chilean cherries to the world has grown in recent years. The total volume exported in the 2017-2018 period is double that exported in the 2016-2017 period and sales for the 2019-2020 period are expected to increase by 15 %. The various varieties of cherries produced in Chile, such as Bing, Lapins, Santina, Sweet Heart, and Rainier, among others, have a sweet flavor and an intense color and are highly valued internationally.

Sharing is caring!