ilogram of white-flesh dragon fruit was sold at VND20,000-22,000 while the price of red-flesh variety was double, said the fruit grower Truong Van Tan from Cho Gao District, Tien Giang Province.In addition to the price fall, it is not easy for farmers to sell products and they are suffering heavy losses.
It is peak harvest time of the dragon fruit and other fruits also in the Mekong Detla, said Vo Chi Thien, chairman of the My Tinh An Dragon Fruit Cooperative in Cho Gao.
Besides, 80 percent of the dragon fruit output has been exported to China, where the dragon fruit is amidst peak harvest season at the same time. Adding to the worse, litchi from the northern region has also flooded the neighboring market, causing difficulties in dragon fruit consumption.
Vietnam should expand export markets to the Southeast Asia, the Middle East and the USA to reduce the dependence on Chinese market, Thien said.
Dragon fruit prices usually reduce in the Dragon Boat Festival that falls on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month every year. This year, it has decreased drastically and quickly.
The most concern is that several areas in Tien Giang, Long An, Tra Vinh, and Vinh Long Provinces have widened the fruit farming areas.
