Foreign fruits "sell out" domestic goods, cheap prices startle
Recorded at the Southern wholesale market (Hanoi), imported fruits such as milk grapes, grape seeds, pomegranates and yellow apples are dominating stalls. Although introduced as foreign goods, their selling prices are incredibly low, even cheaper than many types of domestic fruits.
At a stall specializing in selling grapes and milk grapes, the price ranges from 40,000 to 85,000 VND/kg, while whole grapes are sold at 55,000 VND/kg. When we expressed our desire to buy a large quantity, the seller immediately opened a basket of seedless grapes and confirmed that this was "Ninh Thuan grape". However, inside the basket was a piece of preserved paper printed with foreign characters. This person later added, "the milk grape is an import grape".
Another trader said that this is the end of the green grape crop, so prices are very fluctuating. "Because it is the end of the season, the price of green grapes fluctuates strongly every day. This item can reach the 100,000 VND/kg mark, but can also drop sharply to only 60,000 - 70,000 VND/kg the next day, said a trader. Meanwhile, some other fruits such as pomegranate are being sold at quite cheap prices, only 30,000 VND/kg.
Many traders do not hide the origin of their goods. A store owner called us to see a chat group called "Hang Tau", where leads continuously exchanged, updated and placed orders from China. According to her, goods such as honey apples and sim tangerines are imported. "We are back to Den Lu bus station" - a notice in the writing group.
The current transportation process is also very fast. Regarding the fruit in season, the seller said: "It only takes two days to travel by refrigerated truck to get to the location, without having to go through the warehouse. As for off-season goods, they must be stored in warehouses for one or two weeks to sell them all".
A long-time fruit trader at the market confirmed that she never dared to eat milk grapes and green grapes and questioned the use of chemicals when observing that these fruits were not polluted by insects, specifically flies.
Super vegetable and fruit output and market " gaps"
With the arrival of foreign fruits, many people are concerned about the competitiveness of Vietnamese agricultural products. Speaking to Lao Dong Newspaper, Mr. Dang Phuc Nguyen - General Secretary of the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association - had a frank analysis of this issue.
A reality pointed out by Mr. Nguyen is that high-quality fruits of Vietnam do not appear in wholesale markets because they have been prioritized for export. According to Mr. Nguyen, the reason why high-quality Vietnamese fruits rarely appear in domestic markets is because the current production orientation of farmers is mainly for export. "The quality, delicious... items are mostly for export" - he explained.
Emphasizing the trade balance, Mr. Nguyen said that Vietnam is still a super-export country for vegetables and fruits. He gave a specific example for the Chinese market, where Vietnam's export turnover (over 5 billion USD) is many times higher than import turnover (under 1 billion USD), showing a large difference and a favorable advantage for Vietnamese goods.
