Harvesting tea in Thai Nguyen (Source: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam’s tea export dropped bothvolume and value in the first four months of 2018 despite price hike. Lowquality and lack of internationally-known brand names remain the biggestbarriers for Vietnamese tea to gain strong foothold in foreign markets.
Vietnam exported 34,000 tonnes of tea for 54 million USDduring January – April, a decrease of 10.2 percent and 3.6 percent,respectively, from the same period of 2017.
Prices of exported tea in the first quarter averaged at1,546 USD per tonne, up 7.5 percent year on year. The biggest buyers ofVietnamese tea during the reviewed period included Russia, Pakistan, Taiwan(China), Indonesia, the US, China and Malaysia.
Pakistan continued tobe Vietnam’s largest tea importer in terms of turnover. The country purchased 4,060tonnes or 16 percent of Vietnam’s total tea exports, for 8.45 million USD, down28.9 percent in volume and 19.2 percent in value. The decline was a result of astricter rule of Pakistan which requires an aflatoxin certificate for teaimports.
The similar situation happened to tea shipments to Chinaand Taiwan where stricter regulations were also applied.
Pakistan was followed by Russia who imported over 4,170tonnes of tea for 6.49 million USD, down 8.4 percent in volume but up 6.5percent in value thanks to a 16.2 percent increase in tea prices that averaged1,556 USD per tonne.
According to experts, lower demand might have played a partin the fall of tea exports but the biggest problems were that domesticexporters paid a little attention to improving the tea quality alongside anabsence of Vietnamese tea brands known internationally.
Japan is among countries with large consumption of tea asit is not only good for health but it is part of a hundred-year tea culture inJapan. This leaves huge potential for Vietnamese tea producers to unleash butit will be not easy.
Though Vietnamese tea has made inroads into Japanesemarket but it only accounts for about 0.5 percent of the market share. It islargely due to the fact that the Vietnamese tea has not satisfied the localconsumer taste. Plus, the majority of the exports were in the raw form withlower quality and value.
Last year, Vietnam’s tea exports to the EU saw surges of24.55 percent in volume and 40 percent in value with those to Germany postingthe strongest growth, 82.9 percent in volume and 169 percent in value.
It is a positive signal for the tea industry in Vietnam,particularly since the 500-million-strong EU market comprises of a number ofhigh-income economies where consumers want more than just low prices.Therefore, to boost exports to the EU, Vietnamese producers will need to shiftfocus on improving their products’ quality, design and convenience.-VNA
Vietnam exported 34,000 tonnes of tea for 54 million USDduring January – April, a decrease of 10.2 percent and 3.6 percent,respectively, from the same period of 2017.
Prices of exported tea in the first quarter averaged at1,546 USD per tonne, up 7.5 percent year on year. The biggest buyers ofVietnamese tea during the reviewed period included Russia, Pakistan, Taiwan(China), Indonesia, the US, China and Malaysia.
Pakistan continued tobe Vietnam’s largest tea importer in terms of turnover. The country purchased 4,060tonnes or 16 percent of Vietnam’s total tea exports, for 8.45 million USD, down28.9 percent in volume and 19.2 percent in value. The decline was a result of astricter rule of Pakistan which requires an aflatoxin certificate for teaimports.
The similar situation happened to tea shipments to Chinaand Taiwan where stricter regulations were also applied.
Pakistan was followed by Russia who imported over 4,170tonnes of tea for 6.49 million USD, down 8.4 percent in volume but up 6.5percent in value thanks to a 16.2 percent increase in tea prices that averaged1,556 USD per tonne.
According to experts, lower demand might have played a partin the fall of tea exports but the biggest problems were that domesticexporters paid a little attention to improving the tea quality alongside anabsence of Vietnamese tea brands known internationally.
Japan is among countries with large consumption of tea asit is not only good for health but it is part of a hundred-year tea culture inJapan. This leaves huge potential for Vietnamese tea producers to unleash butit will be not easy.
Though Vietnamese tea has made inroads into Japanesemarket but it only accounts for about 0.5 percent of the market share. It islargely due to the fact that the Vietnamese tea has not satisfied the localconsumer taste. Plus, the majority of the exports were in the raw form withlower quality and value.
Last year, Vietnam’s tea exports to the EU saw surges of24.55 percent in volume and 40 percent in value with those to Germany postingthe strongest growth, 82.9 percent in volume and 169 percent in value.
It is a positive signal for the tea industry in Vietnam,particularly since the 500-million-strong EU market comprises of a number ofhigh-income economies where consumers want more than just low prices.Therefore, to boost exports to the EU, Vietnamese producers will need to shiftfocus on improving their products’ quality, design and convenience.-VNA
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