Beware of Chinese jujubes

Golden melons, rock apples, pomegranates, grapes, plums… are Chinese fruits that are in season and are flooding Vietnamese markets at the moment. Some imported fruits have “revealed their true colors”, labeled as Chinese, no longer pretending to be Vietnamese fruits as before.

According to statistics from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, in the first 6 months of the year, Vietnam spent more than 107 million USD to import fruits from China (about 2,350 billion VND), an increase of 132% compared to the same period in 2016 (80.7 million USD).

The leader of the Plant Protection Department (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) also said that China is a neighboring country of Vietnam, so each season has its own fruit, whatever fruit China has, Vietnam almost imports that fruit. Notably, when it is the main season, many types of fruit are imported in quantities of up to several dozen to hundreds of tons per day.

So, at this time, which Chinese fruits are imported and sold the most in the markets? Below is a list of fruits that are flooding the Vietnamese fruit market:

More and more Chinese grapes are coming in

According to information from the Plant Protection Department, in 2016, Vietnam imported 15,000 tons of Chinese grapes of all kinds (green grapes, black grapes, red grapes). And as of early June this year, 2,000 tons of Chinese grapes have been imported, although it is not yet the peak season.

The leader of this Department also said that Chinese grapes are imported year-round, however, during the main season, the amount of grapes entering the Vietnamese market is greater.

Chinese grapes are imported year round, however, during the main season, the amount of grapes entering the Vietnamese market is greater.

In fact, at wholesale markets, green grapes, red grapes and especially black grapes are being sold in abundance with paper bags lined with Chinese characters. This type of grape from wholesale markets to traditional markets is sold under the label “Ninh Thuan grapes” for 60,000 - 70,000 VND/kg, while seedless green grapes are cheaper, ranging from 35,000 - 40,000 VND/kg depending on the time.

Chinese rock apple

Similarly, after deceiving Vietnamese consumers to buy and eat for the past decade under the label “Ha Giang Rock Apple”, at this time Chinese rock apples have “revealed their true colors” under boxes filled with Chinese characters, with their origin publicly disclosed and sold everywhere from traditional markets to “online markets”. The reason is that in 2015, authorities unanimously spoke out to “expose” rock apples as not being Vietnamese apples, but Chinese goods, because Vietnam cannot grow rock apples.

This is a type of apple that looks quite ugly, the skin is not shiny but when eaten it has a sweet taste, the apple is crispy. It is advertised by the dealers as well as the traders at the market as a type of clean apple from China. Accordingly, the stone apple is entering the peak harvest season, the selling price fluctuates around 30,000 - 35,000 VND/kg.

Chinese pomegranates: Not really delicious but still sold everywhere

August is the pomegranate harvest season. However, in the Vietnamese market, in addition to high-end pomegranates priced at several hundred thousand VND per kilogram imported from the United States, Egypt, Peru, etc., traditional markets and street vendors sell pomegranates imported from China. The reason is that Vietnam has a wide variety of fruits, but up to now we still do not have a commercial pomegranate growing area.

It is not difficult to recognize Chinese pomegranates.

According to the leader of the Quarantine Department in Lao Cai, the Chinese pomegranate season starts in July and lasts until December. The peak time for pomegranate imports to Vietnam is from July to October, with peak days reaching up to 100 tons of Chinese pomegranate.

Therefore, at this time, going to the market or on fruit carts, Chinese pomegranates are sold everywhere with prices ranging from 40,000-45,000 VND/kg for grade 1 pomegranates, grade 2 pomegranates cost 30,000 VND/kg.

Imported over 7,000 tons of plums

Vietnam's plum season is over, and currently the market is mainly dominated by Chinese plums. And according to statistics from the Plant Protection Department, from the beginning of the plum season to July this year, Vietnam has imported over 7,000 tons of plums of all kinds through two main border gates in Lang Son and Lao Cai.

Chinese plums are covering the market stalls.

In fact, on the market, Chinese plums are currently covering all the market stalls. The price depends on each type, for example: sugar plums cost 50,000 VND/kg, giant black plums cost 40,000 VND/kg, and seedless black plums cost 45,000 VND/kg.

Accordingly, at this time, if you go to the market to buy plums for a few tens of thousands of VND per kilogram, they are definitely Chinese plums. Because high-quality imported plums from the US, Australia, Chile, Japan... are being sold at prices ranging from 200,000-900,000 VND/kg depending on the type.

Identifying Chinese yellow melon

Like pomegranates, there are currently two types of yellow melons on the Vietnamese market: round and long. The round type is a melon grown in Vietnam. But the oval-shaped long melon is definitely made in China.

August and September are the main season for melons in China, so they are imported in large quantities to Vietnam. During peak months, an average of 70-90 tons of yellow melons are imported through the border gate every day to be sold in all markets.

Chinese yellow melons have yellow skin with crisscrossing white stripes.

This type of melon has a yellow skin with white stripes crisscrossing each other. The melon weighs about 3 - 4kg/fruit. In season, the melon is sweet and delicious. Currently, this melon is sold at the market for 30,000 VND/kg, but when the market is flooded, the price drops to only 25,000 VND/kg.

Red Apple

Red dates, also known as jujubes, have only appeared on the Vietnamese market in the last 2 years, but the quantity imported to Vietnam is very large. During this season, they are also sold everywhere in the market, even flooding the "online market".

This is a fairly small apple, only similar to the Vietnamese loquat. The outside skin is yellow-green and has dark brown spots that look like rotten apples. However, it is very crunchy and sweet, and is favored by many women because it is a new fruit, and is advertised to have many health benefits.

Apples sold in markets and on social networking sites for 90,000 VND/kg are Chinese apples.

Apples sold in markets and on social media for 90,000 VND/kg are Chinese apples. Meanwhile, Korean jujubes are being sold in imported fruit stores for 850,000 - 900,000 VND/kg.

According to the Plant Protection Department, China is still one of the countries with high risks in terms of food safety and hygiene, so vegetables and fruits imported into Vietnam are often sampled at a higher frequency for testing. Although during the testing and sampling process, the inspection agency also discovered some samples with certain pesticide residues, the majority have not exceeded the prescribed threshold, so domestic businesses and establishments are still allowed to import and sell in large quantities in the market.

According to VNN