HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam is witnessing the potential for fruit and vegetable exports to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The UAE has banned the import of certain fruits and vegetables from five countries in the Middle East, according to the Department of Africa, West Asia and South Asia Markets under the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

According to the ban authorised by the UAE’s Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, imports from Egypt, Oman, Jordan, Lebanon and Yemen will be stopped from May 15 over concerns about the high level of pesticides. The list of banned items includes all varieties of pepper from Egypt; peppers, cabbage, cauliflower, lettuce, squash, beans and aubergines from Jordan; apples from Lebanon; melons, carrots and watercress from Oman; and all types of fruit from Yemen.

Due to unfavourable natural environment and weather conditions for agricultural production, the UAE has to depend on fruit and vegetable imports to meet its local consumption demand, the department said.

The country imported US$3.2 billion worth of fruits and vegetable in 2014. The figures were $2.6 billion in 2015 and over $2.5 billion in 2016, the department said, quoting statistics from the International Trade Centre.

Meanwhile, a report from the Việt Nam General Department of Customs revealed that Vietnamese fruit and vegetable exports to the UAE reached $14.2 million in 2014, $16.2 million in 2015 and $22.8 million in 2016, accounting for a modest part of the UAE’s annual import turnover of this commodity group.

The department called on Vietnamese fruit and vegetable exporters to improve their understanding of the Middle East country’s rules on food hygiene and safety to effectively tap into the lucrative market. — VNS