Vietnam suffers pomelo problems

Nam Roi pomelos have been ripening in orchards in the Mekong Delta over the last month, but now cannot find buyers.

Le Van Hoa, the owner of 5,000 hectares of pomelo growing area in Vinh Long province, says he wishes he could sell his 10 tonnes of pomelo at 4,000 dong per kilo. In early October, small merchants paid 5,000 dong per kilo, but pomelos were still not ripe.They are now paying 1,500-2,000 dong per kilo – a dirt cheap price.

Mekong Delta farmers now have a bountiful crop of Nam Roi pomelo, a specialty fruit of the region. But no buyers.

Nam Roi pomelo plant was once the pride of Mekong Delta and was called the ‘poverty reduction plant’ because it helped local farmers earn money. However, it has become the ‘miserable plant’ in the last two years because pomelos have been unsalable.

Tran Van Long, a farmer in Ben Tre province, said he has never seen pomelo prices drop so dramatically before.

“Farmers will break even only they sell fruit at 5,000 dong per kilo, but they would be happy to find the buyers to pay 2,000-3,000 dong now,” he said

Tran Van Sang, chairman of My Hoa Cooperative, said pomelo prices have dropped dramatically because of limited domestic demand and oversupply.

In fact, Mekong Delta farmers can export pomelos which meet Global GAP standards. However, it is very difficult to compete with China’s pomelos in the world market. One kilo of China’s pomelos are priced at $0.73 in the UK market, while Vietnam’s Nam Roi Binh Minh brand name pomelo is priced at $1 per kilo, according to Sang.

Nguyen Viet Hoa, MA, chairman of the Cai Be Gardener Association, said that for the last few years, farmers have been encouraged to grow more plants, but they have never been supported in seeking markets. When farm produce becomes unsalable, officials say it is because farmers of farmers lacks of planning that there is an oversupply.

Dam Van Hung, the owner of the Huong Mien Tay pomelo granary in Ben Tre province, who specialises in exporting pomelo, said previously, he purchased nearly ten tonnes of pomelo every day, but now purchases one or two tonnes only.

He said that though the crop is bumper, only 30 percent of fruit can meet requirements for export.

While Nam Roi pomelo price has been dropping dramatically, honey pomelos (pomelos with green skin) are selling very well on the domestic market at 23,000 dong per kilo, while small merchants are collecting at 25,000 dong per kilo for export.

Hung fears that farmers will rush to chop down Nam Roi pomelo plants to grow honey pomelos which will again result in over supply.

Tags: Vietnam agriculture, Vietnam business news