According to the Vietnam Trade Office in France, the first batch of lychees—500 kg of fresh fruit provided by Bình Minh Cooperative in Lục Ngạn District, Bắc Giang Province—will arrive in Paris on the morning of June 4 via a Vietnam Airlines flight.

This batch has been treated with sulfur fumigation to kill eggs and insects that might be attached to the lychee skin, meeting the technical requirements for import into France.

Nguyễn Cảnh Cường, Commercial Counselor at the Vietnamese Embassy in France
(Source: Bích Hà/Vietnam+)

Mr. Nguyễn Cảnh Cường, Commercial Counselor at the Vietnamese Embassy in France, said the idea of bringing Vietnamese lychees to France had been in the works by the Trade Office for nearly a year. During last year's lychee harvest, domestic media reported that lychee farmers were struggling to sell their crops due to heavy reliance on unofficial exports to China. The Trade Office stepped in to study and find ways to expand the market into France.

Gathering and transporting lychees for consumption in Thanh Hà District (Hải Dương Province)
(Photo: Đình Huệ/Vietnam News Agency)

Through research, it was found that lychee is a fruit favored by French consumers. Lychees sold in French supermarkets are mostly imported from South Africa and Madagascar, but their quality cannot compare with Vietnamese lychees. However, exporting lychees to France is not easy due to strict technical requirements for treatment and preservation, coupled with high transport costs due to the geographic distance.

During discussions with partners, the Trade Office received positive responses from Thanh Bình Jeune, a supermarket specializing in Vietnamese imports in France. This company had previously distributed lychees from other countries and was familiar with market demand and quality control procedures necessary for French customs clearance. Therefore, in 2015, Vietnamese lychees will enter the French market through the distribution system of Thanh Bình Jeune supermarkets in Paris and Lyon.

Regarding technical standards, Mr. Nguyễn Cảnh Cường explained that while the U.S. requires fruits to be irradiated for import, European countries have a general regulation that fruits must be treated with sulfur fumigation to eliminate pests. Thanh Bình Jeune, in collaboration with the Trade Office, enlisted Mr. Michel Pierre, a French agronomist and fruit expert who is leading a project to help Madagascar preserve and export lychees to France and other EU countries.

Currently in Vietnam, Mr. Michel Pierre will work directly with Ngô Minh Đường, General Director of Thanh Bình Jeune, to select and treat the lychee batches with sulfur fumigation for export to France. He will also conduct two technical training sessions in Bắc Giang and Hải Dương provinces to transfer treatment and preservation technology to local technicians. This technical processing is considered a crucial step in helping Vietnamese lychees penetrate the French market.

If the market responds positively, Thanh Bình Jeune plans to continue importing lychees to France in subsequent shipments throughout June. In addition to air transport, they also plan to ship larger volumes by sea—provided the treatment technology allows the lychees to remain fresh for up to 5 weeks—to reduce transportation costs. The total volume of fresh lychees expected to be exported to France this season is 8 tons.

According to Mr. Nguyễn Cảnh Cường, if Vietnamese lychees successfully enter the French market, it could pave the way for expansion into neighboring markets. The Vietnam Trade Office in France also hopes that in 2016, a larger volume of Vietnamese lychees will be exported to France, not only distributed through Thanh Bình Jeune but also reaching larger supermarket chains with broader networks, such as Casino Group—the parent company of the Big C supermarket chain in Vietnam. Mr. Cường is also optimistic that the preservation and sterilization technology guided by Mr. Michel Pierre could help Vietnam export other strong domestic fruits to Europe.

(Source: www.vietnamplus.vn)