Ben Tre province aims to boost the competitiveness of Xiem coconuts in foreign markets. (Photo: thuonggiathitruong.vn) Ben Tre (VNA) -The southern province of Ben Tre plans to develop its renowned “Xiem” coconutexports by increasing its market value and researching farming technologies andtechniques.
Bui Duong Thuat, Directorof Mekong Impex Fresh Fruit Company Ltd, said that despite Ben Tre "Xiem" coconuts receiving a geographical indication (signs to indicate that a productoriginates from a specific region and possesses its associated qualities), it did not help improve the product’s competitiveness in marketsabroad.
He said that Ben Tre’scoconuts still could not compete with Thailand’s coconuts, due to their higherquality and cheaper production costs. As of March 22, Thailand coconuts weresold at 0.89 USD per coconut at supermarkets in California, the US, while Ben Trecoconuts, which are considered to be of lesser quality, were sold at 0.6 USD.
Ben Tre plans to increaseits coconut’s brand power by creating a network between coconut farmers andbusinesses, reducing the cost of productions, providing funding for studyingtechnology and techniques in coconut farming, as well as increasing land forcoconut farming by 20 percent.
Farmers were also urged towork with cooperative groups and apply VietGap standards in their farmingto ensure higher quality coconuts.
Ben Tre is famous for itscoconuts, having around 70,000 hectares of land for coconut farming. Around 600million coconuts are grown every year, yielding 5.4 trillion VND (237.9 millionUSD) annually.
Its coconuts are sold inseveral foreign markets, such as Canada, US and Australia.-VNA
VNA
