UK a potential market for Vietnamese durian: insiders
Since the first batch of Vietnam’s Ri6 durian was officially exported to the UK in the beginning of May, TT Meridian Company has regularly imported 3-4 tonnes of this specialty fruit every week, which shows that it is well received by consumers in this market.
London (VNA) - Since the first batch of Vietnam’sRi6 durian was officially exported to the UK in the beginning of May, TT Meridian Company has regularlyimported 3-4 tonnes of this specialty fruit every week, which shows that it iswell received by consumers in this market.
With many years of research on Vietnam's fruits that havepotential and advantages for being exported to the UK market, TT Meridian, acompany specialising in the distribution of Vietnamese agricultural products inthe European country, sees bright prospects for durian export to this market.
Thai Tran, Managing Director of TT Meridian, said that with the preferentialtax of zero under the UK-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA), durian import from Vietnam has a great competitive advantage in price compared to those from other countries which is now subject to an 8% tax rate, in the context that highinflation is making price a top concern for importers, distributors and consumersin the UK.
According to him, the UK market has many customer segmentsand Vietnamese durian can target Asian customers as well as manufacturers andprocessors of durian products such as ice cream, yogurt and smoothies. Theprice advantage at this moment opens up opportunities for this Vietnamese fruitto reach UK consumers and distributors.
However, he also pointed to several challenges for Vietnamesedurian to stand firm in this competitive market.
One of the difficulties for durian exporters is theprocedure for getting a certificate of origin for shipments from theVietnamese authorities. As a mandatory requirement to enjoy tax incentivesunder the UKVFTA, the procedure currently takes a long time, manpower andcosts because businesses have to directly apply for a paper certificate oforigin.
Therefore, he proposed the granting of the electronic certificatewith online transactions.
Sharing the same view, Vietnamese Trade Counsellor in the UKNguyen Canh Tuong suggested State management agencies support businesses by shorteningthe quarantine time and the time for issuing the certificate of origin toensure the entire process of bringing fruits from the place of harvest to thelaboratory, to the border gate, and through customs clearance within half of a dayto be boarded on flights the same day./.
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Illustrative image (Photo: congthuong.vn) 
