Ample space remains to boost rice exports to France
VOV.VN - Despite enjoying preferential tariffs, domestic enterprises must devise long-term plans to increase rice exports to the stringent French market, according to industry insiders.
During a recent consultation session co-hosted by the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency and Vietnam’s Trade Office in France, Le Thi Thanh Minh, head of the European-America Market Department, pointed out that France represents the largest rice importer in the EU with an annual demand reaching approximately 600,000 tons. Indeed, the Central European country therefore represents a major export market for Vietnamese rice.
Despite this potential, Vietnamese export volume to the demanding market accounts for only 2.1% of the overall market share, a factor which has opened up a wealth of opportunities for Vietnamese rice to increase its market share in France.
Vu Anh Son, head of the Vietnamese Trade Office in France, said that in line with commitments set out under the terms of EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), the bloc gives the nation an export quota of 80,000 tonnes of rice annually.
However, Vietnamese rice has yet to take full advantage of the various opportunities brought about by the trade pact due to domestic enterprises not having an effective approach to potential partners when introducing their products, Son added.
At present, Vietnamese rice has developed a presence in small-scale stores and retail chains, boasting a low price in France but failing to penetrate hypermarkets in the country.
Most notably, there are only six domestic enterprises that are eligible to directly export rice to 16 partners based in France.
Moreover, local rice exporters are facing a number of hurdles, including language barrier, tough competition from regional peers, along with a lack of brand building and knowledge about consumption habits in both the EU and the French market.
This can be seen as the export price of Vietnamese rice tends to be higher than similar products already in the market. Moreover, the EU's strict regulations regarding food safety and hygiene, plant quarantine rules, and packaging also pose a number of challenges to local enterprises.
Son therefore advised domestic businesses to set up a team of consultants, whilst researching and boosting market expansion to achieve EU standard certificates toward making further inroads into the French market.
Concurring with this viewpoint, Dinh Thi Tuyet Nhung, network and business expansion manager at Source of Asia, also underscored the importance of brand development and knowledge about commercial law and payment terms as a means of achieving greater market penetration.
