The first shipment was announced at a ceremony held on April 13 by the Dong Thap People’s Committee in coordination with Blue Ocean Trading Import-Export Joint Stock Company. The event highlights the province’s capacity to organise production, connect supply with markets and meet import requirements for its fruit sector.

Alongside Vinh Long, Dong Thap is among the largest pomelo-growing areas in the Mekong Delta. Following administrative reorganisation, the province now has nearly 5,000 hectares of pomelo cultivation, with green-skin pomelo as the main variety.

The fruit has been widely developed in areas formerly under Cho Gao district and My Tho city of the former Tien Giang province. Improved quality has helped Dong Thap’s green-skin pomelos gain wider market acceptance, including in export markets.

The export of more than five tonnes of pomelos to Australia by Blue Ocean further affirms the product’s reputation and brand.

Tran Thanh Phong, Director of My Phong Cooperative in Dong Thap, whose pomelos are included in the shipment, said this was the cooperative’s first export batch to Australia and that meeting the market’s standards posed challenges. “We had mainly exported to the United States before and were familiar with those requirements. Australia has additional plant quarantine requirements compared with other markets, making the process more stringent. Despite careful preparation, we still had concerns.

The first shipment is priced at a supportive level to facilitate market entry; adjustments will follow once operations stabilise,” she said, adding that the growing area offers favourable conditions, allowing for higher prices than in other regions.

To meet Australia’s import criteria, relevant parties have improved production processes towards “clean” practices, strengthened harvesting and post-harvest handling, sorting and uniformity, and applied traceability labelling, while ensuring food safety requirements.

Phan Quoc Nam, Deputy Sales Director at Blue Ocean, said product quality must meet standards agreed between Vietnam’s Ministry of Agriculture and Environment and Australia after about two years of negotiations and adjustments.

According to the Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection under the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, Vietnam currently has more than 100,000 hectares of pomelo cultivation.

Dong Thap’s first shipment to Australia helps enhance the brand of its green-skin pomelos, boost consumption and exports of key fruit products, and encourages businesses, cooperatives and growers to improve quality, develop export-standard growing areas and enhance value chain linkages for higher and more stable value.

Australia clears path for Vietnamese pomelos with biosecurity final report

Australia’s Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) has completed its final report on biosecurity requirements for fresh pomelo from Vietnam, determining that the fruits could be imported to the country provided they comply with comprehensive pest control measures and phytosanitary protocols.