First batch of longan shipped to the US

The longans, grown in Ham Tu and Hong Nam villages in Hung Yen province will undergo irradiation to neutralise plant pests before export.

Despite a modest volume, this good news has encouraged longan farmers to improve the fruit quality.

Ham Tu and Hong Nam villages have nearly 20ha of longan trees planted under the Vietnamese Good Agriculture Practice (VietGap) standards in which farmers only use permitted bio-pesticides and keep spray diaries to ensure longan quality and safety.

Hong Nam village has also cultivated longan on another 170ha with an annual output of more than 2,000 tonnes.

In Hung Yen province, longan trees are grown on more than 3,000ha which give an output of 35,000-40,000 tonnes. The longans are harvested from late July to late September.

The fruits are mainly consumed at the domestic market and a part of them are processed into dried longans to export to China.