Forestry exports in 2018 could reach 9 billion USD
In 2017, for the first time, Vietnam's forestry exports reached 8 billion USD, mainly wood and wood products.
In developing traditional markets and expanding export markets of the Vietnamese wood industry, businesses are clearly seeing opportunities. That is, China is currently restricting the development of labor-intensive industries, including wood processing. Meanwhile, the Vietnamese wood industry is still developing but limiting labor-intensive industries with new technology. Many businesses said that any new and effective wood processing technology can be imported and put into production immediately.
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| Wood and wood products with the target of reaching 8.5 USD in 2018. (Photo: Infonet) |
Previous orders in the Chinese market are reaching many Vietnamese enterprises. Commenting on this opportunity, Mr. Dien Quang Hiep, General Director of Mifaco Company, Member of the Executive Committee of the Handicraft and Wood Processing Association of Ho Chi Minh City (HAWA) said: “In recent years, the Chinese Government has had a development orientation that no longer focuses on industries that abuse labor, including the wood processing industry. Therefore, this is also an objective condition that brings about advantages. I think this is an important point, plus we are increasingly perfecting our production capacity, creating a good growth rate.”
Along with orders from the Chinese market, the US and European markets are still identified as the industry's key markets in 2018, when export sales to these markets always grow the best. In addition, the domestic market has also been given more attention by businesses in recent years. Many businesses have chosen their segments, the remaining problem is choosing which partner is suitable for large-scale production.
The market is there, but where are the raw materials for production? Associations and business communities in the industry have committed to “say no to illegal wood” by raising awareness of building a system of responsibility for the origin of wood in businesses and throughout the supply chain, making the wood processing industry a sustainable production industry using legal wood materials.
According to Mr. Nguyen Chien Thang, CEO of Scansia Pacific Company in Dong Nai province,“The raw material we are using is mostly acacia wood. We are growing a lot of acacia wood in our country, but farmers grow it on a small scale, and very few companies have large planting areas. Our goal is to build a 10,000 hectare raw material area, enough to meet the company's needs,” said Mr. Thang.
Along with gradually taking the initiative in raw materials, enterprises also determined to increase competitiveness through management, labor productivity, innovation in processing technology... The agricultural sector nationwide is promoting intensive cultivation of 4.1 million hectares of planted forests and production forests to ensure the amount of wood supplied to the processing industry. The task of enterprises is to make the wood processing and export industry and wood products increasingly bring high economic efficiency.
Mr. Huynh Van Hanh, Vice President of the Handicraft and Wood Processing Association of Ho Chi Minh City (HAWA) said: “Enterprises need to diversify products and markets to expand, especially markets where Vietnam has just signed FTA agreements. We also need to diversify our wood sources so as not to be passive when prices suddenly increase, and we need to invest in technology to increase productivity, stabilize quality, and reduce product costs.”
Thus, with favorable conditions in terms of market and raw materials, the ability to achieve the target of exporting forestry products in 2018 to reach 9 billion USD, of which wood and wood products account for more than 8.5 billion USD, by 2020, the total export turnover of forestry products will reach 10 billion USD, domestic consumption will reach 4 billion USD is completely feasible./.