Opportunities for Binh Dinh coconut in the Chinese market

Opportunities and challenges

According to Kieu Van Cang, Head of the Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection of Binh Dinh, the province has the 5th largest coconut area in the country (after Ben Tre, Tra Vinh, Tien Giang, Vinh Long) and the largest in the Central region.

As of 2023, the coconut area in Binh Dinh is 9,353 hectares; of which, the area of ​​Siamese coconut (drinking coconut) accounts for 24.5%, equivalent to about 2,292 hectares; the average yield is 119.3 quintals/ha, the output is 111,358 tons per year.

According to the plan, by 2025, Binh Dinh will increase the coconut area to 10,000 hectares, of which 9,700 hectares are for commercial coconut, with an output of 116,400 tons per year (mainly coconut for drinking water), mainly concentrated in Hoai Nhon town, Phu My district, Hoai An district, and Phu Cat district.

Hoai Nhon is a favorable land for coconut trees to grow, the average age of coconuts here is 20-25 years, many coconut gardens are pretty old, nearly 40 years old, with an average yield of 25-30 fruits/tree/year. Hoai Nhon has a coconut growing area of ​​about 3,000 hectares, scattered in 17 communes and towns, of which some coconut gardens have high yields in Tam Quan Nam, Hoai Hao, Hoai Thanh Tay, and Hoai Xuan. Hoai Nhon Coconut has the advantage of long-standing coconut gardens, large fruits, and high oil content, and is a district with a large coconut area in Binh Dinh (the whole province is about 10,500 hectares).

"Fresh coconuts officially exported to China are an opportunity for farmers who own nearly 3,000 hectares of Siamese coconuts in Binh Dinh. For a long time, coconuts have been consumed mainly in the domestic market, and a small amount has been sold in other provinces. The price varies greatly depending on the season, ranging from VND 8,000 - 12,000 per fruit in the dry season, and only 5,000 - VND 6,000 per fruit in the rainy season. Now that coconuts are officially exported to China, the price of drinking coconuts will certainly be more stable, and farmers will gain better incomes," Cang expected.

Binh Dinh is even happier when the provincial authorities have just completed the procedures to apply for a growing area code for more than 70 hectares of drinking coconuts in Phu Cat and Hoai An districts. Because the growing area code is a prerequisite for exporting fresh coconuts to the Chinese market.

Speed ​​up the issuance of production unit code

Fresh coconut water is facing a great opportunity to be officially exported to China. Still, with an area of ​​more than 70 hectares that has completed the procedures for granting production unit codes out of the total fresh coconut area of ​​nearly 3,000 hectares of Binh Dinh, it is not worth it. Therefore, in the coming time, Binh Dinh authorities will step up propaganda work, encouraging localities with large coconut areas to speed up the registration for production unit codes for drinking coconut water areas. At the same time, based on the importing country's requirements, Binh Dinh authorities will guide organizations and individuals to know how to implement, especially guiding farmers to cultivate drinking coconut trees according to the process of the host country to ensure the required standards and quality.

According to Vo Dinh Tri, an expert of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Phu Cat district, there are 1,200 coconut trees in Phu Cat district, most of which are drinking coconut trees. In early 2024, the district's functional sector registered with the Binh Dinh Department of Cultivation and Plant Protection to complete the procedures for granting production unit codes for 3 coconut areas in 3 villages of Tung Chanh, Hoa Dai and Hoi Van of Cat Hiep commune; and the coconut area in Phu Kim village of Cat Trinh commune with a total area of ​​60 hectares of 120 households. The Department has completed the procedures and sent them to the Plant Protection Department.

Head of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Hoai An district, Vo Duy Tin, said there are currently 500 hectares of drinking coconut trees in this district, of which more than 250 hectares are in the business period, and The Ministry of Science and Technology has granted Hoai An coconut tree a collective trademark. In early 2024, the functional sector of Hoai An district also registered with the Department of Cultivation and Plant Protection of Binh Dinh to carry out procedures to grant production unit codes for more than 10 hectares of drinking coconut.