BẮC GIANG – Northern Bắc Giang Province, a lychee farming hub of Việt Nam, plans to export some 50,000 tonnes of thiều lychee, or 50 per cent of its total output, in 2017.

This was stated by local officials at a meeting on Saturday.

The event, aimed to promote lychee sales, was attended by Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Lê Quốc Doanh, representatives of the northern border provinces of Lạng Sơn and Lào Cai, officials of Chinese localities importing lychees, and domestic and foreign lychee traders.
Vice chairman of Bắc Giang People’s Committee Dương Văn Thái said this year, the province continues to focus on lychee export to traditional markets, especially China. It will increase export volume to the United States, the European Union, Japan, the Republic of Korea and Australia while expanding shipments to the Middle East, Thailand and Canada.
In the domestic market, the fruit will be sold mainly in Hà Nội, HCM City and nearby provinces.
However, he noted, abnormal weather conditions such as prolonged heat waves and late cold spells had affected the growth of lychee trees, making the rate of fruits fall by about 40 per cent from 2016 to some 100,000 tonnes.
The output of lychees under VietGAP and GlobalGAP standards in the province is currently some 40,000 tonnes and 1,600 tonnes, respectively. Notably, 218ha of lychee trees have been granted codes by the United States, Thái added.
At the meeting, officials of Lạng Sơn and Lào Cai provinces, which border China, pledged the best possible conditions for Bắc Giang’s lychee export to China. They promised customs clearance time would be within 20 minutes.
Fang Dong, deputy head of Hekou County in China’s Yunnan Province, spoke highly of the quality and appearance of Bắc Giang’s lychees, which have become popular among Chinese consumers.
Bắc Giang officials also vowed to provide favourable conditions and ensure security for traders to purchase and process local lychees. – VNS