The VietnamTrade Office’s branch in San Francisco (US) said avocados are mainly sold atbig supermarkets with large volumes, so they must meet the high requirements ofthe US market. Avocado distribution companies must be responsible forcontrolling the stages of a supply chain, from production to distribution,while exporters need to have sufficient quality certificates.

To enterthe US market, avocados must meet the minimum requirements of the regulationson maturity, colour and weight. Avocados must be intact, clean and withoutinsects.

Therefore,small-scale exporters often face many difficulties in accessing this market dueto lack of experience or linkage with supply chains. In addition, the processof transporting avocados from farms to the market is a huge challenge.

It said Vietnamcurrently has many avocado varieties with harvest time across almost the wholeyear. However, the value of Vietnamese avocado is still low due to limitationsin production, including limitations of applying science and technology forproduction, fragmented production scale, and lack of branding and geographicalindications.

Therefore,to export avocado to the US, Vietnam must require exporters ensure they havequality certificates, establish trust with partners in the supply chain bystrong commitment on quality and information transparency in implementingexport contracts.

If Vietnam’sfarmers have qualified production as well as suitable investment and marketapproaches for avocados, they can gain high turnover from exporting this kindof fruit to a difficult market like the US, the office said.

Accordingto a US survey on avocado consumption, the US in 2018 spent 2.35 billion USDimporting 1.04 million tonnes of avocados. About 51 percent of households inthe US consume avocados with average spending of 24.5 USD each year, the officereported.

Avocadotrees are planted in certain geographical regions. China and Thailand are majorexporters of agricultural products but avocado trees are not suitable forplanting. Avocado trees are popular in Vietnam and it has the potential tosupply this kind of fruit to the US.

Beforethat, Vietnam spent 10 years to get a licence for exporting mangoes to the US.

Avocadogrowing countries include Mexico, Indonesia, Spain, Brazil, Peru, Chile, SouthAfrica and some other South American countries.

In Vietnam,avocado trees are now grown in many provinces and cities, but concentrated inthe Central Highlands region with a total area of 8,000 ha.

Dak Lak provinceis the largest producer in Vietnam with a total area of over 4,300 ha.Following are Dak Nong with an area of nearly 2,600 ha, Lam Dong and Gia Laiprovinces.

In recentyears, the Central Highlands avocados have been available in markets andsupermarkets in Vietnam and also exported to China./. VNA