Vietnamese growers and exporters are able to provide a year-round supply of dragon fruit. “The demand on the Chinese market is still high, as are the prices,” says Ly Thanh Thao of the Vietnamese company Hoang Hau Dragon fruit Farm.
The main export destination within China is Beijing. Since last year, the Chinese demand for Vietnamese dragon fruit has been increasing. The main reason for this is simply that Chinese consumers seem to like Vietnamese dragon fruit. The main variety that is sold to the Chinese market is white dragon fruit.
Apart from China, Hoang Hao supplies dragon fruit to Europe, Canada and India. “The Indian market is still quite new. We’ve been sending our produce for two or three years. For us, it isn’t a big market yet. We supply mainly to importers, who resell the dragon fruit to other channels. The Indian market is tough. The prices aren’t that good, as there is a lot of competition from other exporters."
Though a lot of countries in South East Asia grow dragon fruit, Vietnam has a competitive edge. Vietnamese growers can produce it throughout the whole year, unlike other countries in this region. Another advantage is that it has achieved a reputation as a high quality product.