leftcenterrightdel
RoK's pears and apples. Photo: enternews.vn
The RoK’s pear exports to Vietnam surged in the 2011-2016 period, from USD 52,000 in 2011 to USD 4.96 million last year.

Its apple exports to Vietnam also went up by 928.8 percent in the period, from USD 66,000 to USD 679,000.

Speaking on the sidelines of a seminar in Ho Chi Minh City on November 24, Cao Thị Quynh Giao, Director of Lam Khai Hoan Co., Ltd., said her company imports about two to five containers (each container having a loading capacity of 600kg) of pears and apples from the RoK to distribute to supermarkets in Vietnam.

“Many Vietnamese consumers are fond of Korean pears due to its good quality and reasonable prices,” she said.

Her company plans to import more pears and Fuji apples from the RoK, kiwi from Australia and gala apple from the US, she said.

Taa Minh Thanh, deputy director of Tưu Son Supermarket in Chau Doc, An Giang province, said the supermarket started to sell Korean pears and apples two and a half years ago, with sales of pear very good.

“We are here to meet Korean firms as we want to find suppliers of apple/pear gift boxes to serve customers on the occasion of Lunar New Year holiday,” he said.

Lee Soon Nyung, managing director of Hyun Jin Corporation, said the RoK exports about 25,000 tons of pears a year, with the US (10,000 tons), Taiwan (10,000 tons) and Vietnam (2,000 tons) being three biggest export markets.

It exports about 3,400 tons of apples a year, of which 2,000 tons is exported to Taiwan (China) and 300 tons to Vietnam.

leftcenterrightdel
At the seminar. Photo: enternews.vn
As Vietnam does not cultivate pears and apples, many businesses have imported them from other countries to supply in the market. Vietnamese people are fond of Korean fruits, especially apples and pears, he said.

“Vietnam is a very potential market. We want to export more apples and pears as well as other kinds of fruits into Vietnam.”

“The business meeting today will help us understand more about requirements of our Vietnamese partners so as we can satisfy their demand.”

Lee Sun Hyung from Gyeong Buk Corporation, said "Vietnam is an emerging market for Korean fruits.

Many Korean companies as well as his company have prepared high-grade pear and apple gift boxes with nice design, hoping that the products will be consumed well in Vietnam in the future, he said.

Organized by the Korea Agriculture Food Trade Association and the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Vietnam-RoK business seminar attracted seven Korean fresh fruits exporting firms and 15 Vietnamese enterprises.

The two sides exchanged information on import-export situation, prices, and quality of products as well as difficulties accounted during the import process. Korean firms talked about ways to improve the problems and propose ways to increase exports in the future.

The association said it plans to invite Vietnamese fruit importers to visit South Korea to understand more about the production process of the fruits as well as discuss business opportunities.

Vietnam imported vegetables and fruits worth USD 1.02 billion in the first eight months of 2017, a year-on-year increase of 94 percent. Of which, the import value of vegetables was around USD 200 million, while fruits imports were more than USD 800 million, double the same period last year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Source: VNA