At the seminar on maintaining and expanding the market share of Vietnamese honey exports to the EU (Credit: VGP)

The information was released at a seminar on maintaining and expanding the market share of Vietnamese honey exports to the EU, in Ho Chi Minh City, on November 1. The event was held by the European trade policy and investment support project (EU-Mutrap).

At the seminar, the experts emphasised that in order to enhance exports, Vietnamese honey products should meet the quality requirements from importers.

In March 2013, Vietnam’s honey products were allowed to be exported to the EU market as they met the technical requirements in the management and monitoring of chemical residue.

From the beginning of the year up to September 15, Vietnam exported approximately 29,000 tonnes of honey, including 1,469 tonnes to the EU.

According to the Chairman of the Vietnamese Beekeepers Association Dinh Quyet Tam, the import demands of EU market increases by 5.5%-7% per year, while the number of bee colonies and beekeepers in EU tends to decrease. In addition, the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) will soon become effective, creating conditions for enterprises to increase their honey export output to this demanding market.

EU-Mutrap’s international experts said that Vietnamese enterprises need to change their production process in order to fully meet the standards required by importers. In addition, it is essential to build the Vietnamese honey brand in the EU market, as well as setting out a strategy to develop the beekeeping industry in the country.