The new position of Bac Giang lychee

Bac Giang lychee is famous throughout the country and abroad, and gains a foothold in the market. Amid difficulties from the outbreak of Covid-19, lychee was still sold smoothly and even accessed many new high-end and fastidious markets, thereby affirming its position that few other agricultural products have obtained.

The fruit-laden lychee garden in Hong Giang commune (Luc Ngan).

Warmly welcomed by consumers

The Covid-19 pandemic broke out with thousands of infections, but by June 12, the whole province had sold more than 80,000 tonnes of lychee, of which nearly half was exported. Particularly, the early-ripening lychee crop was considered a success since the selling prices were similar to those of last year despite the complicated developments of the disease.

Now lychee is entering the main season and the product is being consumed in a number of demanding markets such as Japan, Germany, France and the US. Speaking from Japan during a lychee consumption promotion teleconference with 30 televised points at home and abroad, Vietnamese Ambassador to Japan Vu Hong Nam said: “2021 is the second year Bac Giang lychee has been exported to Japan. Japanese consumers assessed that Bac Giang lychee is the best among the lychees available in Japan and expected this specialty to reach more regions of their country."

Luc Ngan lychee is also the only fruit of Vietnam granted a Geographical Indication Certificate. This affirms the quality and position of Bac Giang lychee in the domestic and international fruit markets.

With the traditional export market of China, in this lychee crop, even though Chinese traders could not come, they still sent money to order tens of thousands of tonnes of lychee.

Not only for export, in the domestic market, many trips carried lychees to Yen Bai and Khanh Hoa provinces, where the fruit was consumed very quickly. Many people showed their regret as they were not able to buy the fruit.

Improving quality, being flexible in selling

Bac Giang boasts a concentrated lychee growing area with the largest annual output in the country, hitting 180,000 tonnes in 2021. Lychee is also a trademark of Bac Giang. The provincial authorities are completing criteria to make it a national product. Thus, this agricultural product is not only at the provincial level but is broader and larger, and it is an interest of the Government, ministries and central agencies.

With outstanding quality and beautiful appearance as well as flexible and creative solutions of the province on product promotion and sale, Bac Giang lychee has affirmed its position and dominated the domestic and foreign markets.

The province has always taken solutions to maintain quality and acted flexibly in selling the product, which is clearly shown in the context of the Covid-19 outbreak in this year's lychee crop.

This year Bac Giang has seen the highest lychee production ever, so since the epidemic did not develop complicatedly yet, promoting available advantages, the province actively built three scenarios for product sale. As soon as the pandemic broke out, the province activated scenario 2, selling 70 percent domestically and exporting the remaining; while urgently building a shield to protect the lychee area from Covid-19.

Bac Giang also completed the procedures to prove that the batches of lychee are safe when being brought to the market as lychee truck drivers and growers were given priority for Covid-19 vaccination and testing, as well as got Covid-18-free certification. The consignments were certified as coming from disease-free areas with traceability and food safety assured.

The first year the province established two working groups at the border gates in Lao Cai and Lang Son provinces to promptly grasp and solve problems for lychee exporters. The provincial Department of Transport arranged hundreds of vehicles to transport lychees. Lao Cai and Lang Son border gates have arranged "green lanes" dedicated to lychee to go through customs clearance. Officers at the border gates are ready to work overtime to make customs clearance as smooth as possible.

The new feature of this year's lychee sale is that Bac Giang promoted e-commerce transactions and enhanced online connections in the context of complicated developments of the Covid-19 pandemic.

With outstanding quality and beautiful appearance as well as flexible and creative solutions of the province on product promotion and sale, Bac Giang lychee has affirmed its position and dominated the domestic and foreign markets.