Efforts made to turn Vietnam into world’s spice supplier

Hanoi (VNA) - Vietnam’s agriculture sector along with the spices and seasonings industry have enjoyed a remarkable transition which turns the country into a supplier of those products for the global market.

Le Hoang Tai, Vice Director of the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency (Vietrade) under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, unveiled the information during a virtual conference on Vietnamese spices and seasonings hosted by Vietrade on September 8.

Trade promotions and technical support have helped firms in the sector to surmount difficulties and develop sustainably by moving to produce more value added items, he stated.

Among Vietnamese spices, peppercorn has gained a foothold on the international market and holds a lion’s share in export revenues.

At present, demand for peppercorn and others has been on the rise while global exports of such products decline due to difficulties caused by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Vietnamese firms have worked to gradually meet more stringent requirements of foreign trade partners and are able to provide added value products with high quality and food safety.

Tai advised localities and firms to devise production recovery plans, apply advanced technologies, diversify products and capitalise on recent new-generation free trade agreements that Vietnam is a signatory to bolster exports once COVID-19 is brought under control.

Speaking at the event, First Secretary and Head of the Vietnamese Trade Office in Saudi Arabia Tran Trong Kim, said the Middle East nation consumes many kinds of spices, mainly imports from foreign countries, including Vietnam, adding that the country is having a high demand for organic food and spices.

Statistics showed that Vietnam shipped products worth 225 million USD to Saudi Arabia in the first seven months of this year. The country rakes in an average of 10 million USD from exports of spices to Saudi Arabia each year./.