Vietnams fresh longan makes debut in Australia

Melbourne – The first batch of Vietnam’s fresh longan went on sale in Melbourne city of Australia’s Victoria state on September 9.

Consumers purchase fresh longan from Vietnam, with the first batch going on sale in Melbourne city of Australia on September 9 (Photo: VNA)

In nearly one hour after hitting the shelves, more than 500kg of imported fresh longan were sold to retailers.

Fresh longan of Vietnam is being sold in 26 supermarkets and stores in Melbourne and a supermarket chain in Adelaide in South Australia state.

Speaking at a ceremony marking the debut of fresh longan in the Australian market, head of the Vietnam Trade Office in Australia Nguyen Phu Hoa said the fruit was exported to the Land of the Kangaroos within just two weeks after obtaining an import licence of the country’s Department of Agriculture.

He spoke highly of efforts made by Green Path, the first company shipping the Vietnamese specialty to Australia, in satisfying standards of one of the world’s most demanding markets.

Vietnamese farm produce’s quality has been improved, enabling the products to enter many markets worldwide, thereby raising farmers’ livelihoods and export turnover of the country, Hoa added.

Meanwhile, director of Green Path Australia Anna Le said the company has plans to increase the import volume of the fruit to meet consumer’s demand. In the coming time, the company will work to ship longan to all Australian major cities, she noted.

On August 29, the Australian Department of Agriculture handed over to Vietnam the permit to ship Vietnamese longan to Australia, making longan the fourth kind of Vietnamese fruit to enter the market, following litchi, mango and dragon fruit.

With a population of 25 million people, Australia spends 600 billion USD on import each year. It is viewed as a potential market for the export of Vietnam’s staples, especially farm produce.