Dong Thap (VNA) - The MekongDelta province of Dong Thap has become the first locality in Vietnam to exportmangoes to the US.
Nguyen Thi Hong Thu, Director of the Chanh ThuFruits Import and Export Ltd Co, said the company shipped the first batchof eight tonnes of mangoes to the US by air on April 18. The batch camefrom the My Xuong Mango Cooperative in Dong Thap.
At present, the company has managed over 25regions growing all kinds of fruit over an area of nearly 400ha, including175ha of mango.
In addition, the company has worked with manycooperatives growing fruits, including the My Xuong Mango Cooperative in DongThap province and the Binh Phuoc Xuan in An Giang Province.
At a ceremony announcing the first mango exportsto the US, Nguyen Thanh Hung, Vice Chairman of the People’s Committee of DongThap, said the province is home to 9,200ha of mangoes, producing 100,000 tonnesper year, topping the Mekong Delta region.
Mangoes are among the province’s five keyproducts to be boosted for export.
Dong Thap has applied Vietnamese GoodAgricultural Practices (VietGap) and Global Good Agricultural Practices(GlobalGap) in mango cultivation, which has helped to improve quality.
Mangoes are grown in 59 among 63 localities inVietnam. Of which, the Mekong Delta region accounts for 48 percent of mangoplantations in the country. About 96 percent of Vietnamese mangoes areproduced and sold locally.
Vietnamese mangoes have been exported to 40countries, including the Republic of Korea, Japan, Singapore, Australia, NewZealand, China and Thailand.
The Ministry of Agriculture and RuralDevelopment’s Plant Protection Department said the US had finally agreed toimport Vietnamese mangoes after 10 years of negotiations.
Vietnam gained an export value of 4 billion USDfrom fruits and vegetables last year, according to the ministry.-VNA