Vietnam’s farm produce exports are in the face of a great opportunity for growth when the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (UVFTA) is going to be signed. Although being an industrial locality, Binh Duong has still paid attention to agricultural production. The role of agricultural sector for the common development of the province is very important. But, it is not simple for the province to know which farm produce they will select to penetrate into the EU market.
Opportunity for pepper
According to Nguyen Tan Binh, Director of provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, the province’s two agricultural products, including pepper and rubber, are likely to widely and deeply penetrate into the EU market. Vietnamese pepper now accounts for 60% of the global market share, but Binh Duong only has a very small contribution to this.
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Pepper being harvested by farmers in Phu Giao district
Dang Thanh Nhan, Director of Dang Nguyen Farm Produce Export Co.Ltd. said that since early this year, the company’s black pepper has been mainly exported into the U.S, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, European countries…The company has also directly surveyed and signed contacts purchasing pepper at pepper gardens in Gia Lai, Dac Lac, Dong Nai, Binh Phuoc…to ensure pepper supply with high quality at partners’demand.
According to experts, pepper is a kind of plant bringing farmers a lot of opportunities to get rich. Phu Giao district is now the largest pepper cultivation region in Binh Duong with 276 hectares. Many households herein mainly earn their living by pepper cultivation.
The province’s pepper growing area is not great. But with advantages of an industrial province having favorable geographic position and traffic system, Binh Duong is still an ideal destination for businesses at home and abroad to get involved in the field of processing pepper for export.
“New wind” for rubber tree?
Since early this year, Vietnam’s rubber exports have increased by 14% in volume compared to last year’s corresponding period, but rubber latex prices have reduced by over 22%. The prices of rubber latex prices now stand at VND8,000 per kg in the domestic market and decrease by more than US$100 per ton for export.
Nguyen Van Tan, CEO of Phuoc Hoa Rubber Joint Stock Company, in 2014, Vietnam was the world's third largest natural rubber exporter after Thailand and Indonesia. Rubber ranked fourth among Vietnam’s valuable agricultural products and contributed around 1.2% of the country’s total export turnover.
The company’s total export turnover last year was estimated at US$23.25mln with total output of more than 10,835 tons rubber latex. In 2015, fluctuations from rubber prices plus the UVFTA will make impacts on rubber export market. Not only the company, many other companies, which are specialized in planting rubber trees and processing their latex, are also waiting for a “new wind” from the EU market.
Ho Van Binh, Deputy Director of provincial Department of Industry and Trade said that the province’s total export turnover to the EU market last year was nearly US$2.2bln and there was only a small contribution from the local agricultural sector. Rubber is seen one of the province’s main export agricultural commodities, but the export value of this kind of tree has not been corresponding to its potential yet.
According to statistics by functional agencies, as of June 2015, the whole province’s rubber growing area increased to 134,031 hectares with an abundant supply of latex rubber at demand for domestic production and export. If being well controlled plus EU’s import duties reduced at maximum level, Binh Duong’s rubber will enjoy additional conditions for strong and sustainable development in the coming time.
Reported by Quynh Nhien-Phung Hieu-Translated by K.T
