American apples are as cheap as Chinese apples?

In large supermarkets or traditional markets in Hanoi, there are many high-end fruit products with prices cheaper than Chinese fruit.

Dominate the supermarkets

A common point when surveying supermarket systems and self-service food stores today is the dominance of fruits from temperate countries such as apples, grapes, kiwis, pears, etc. However, this is also easy to explain because these fruits cannot be grown in our country's climate, but are very suitable for Vietnamese taste.

It is difficult to identify the origin of fruits with the naked eye (Photo: NNVN)

On the afternoon of July 29, at the fruit area of ​​Big C Thang Long supermarket on Tran Duy Hung street, Hanoi, we recorded three shelves selling apples originating from New Zealand. Of which, the shelf right next to the entrance sold Queen apples for only 55,900 VND/kg, the next shelf sold Fuji New apples for 79,900 VND/kg and the third shelf sold Ambrosia New apples for 92,900 VND/kg.

This is a fairly cheap price compared to apples originating from a country famous for its fruits like New Zealand. Previously, the price of 1kg of this type of apple usually fluctuated from 150,000 - 200,000 VND/kg.

On the morning of July 30, we continued our survey at Ocean Mark supermarket on Pham Ngoc Thach street, Hanoi and found that the price of Queen apples here is even lower than at BigC at 54,900 VND/kg. In addition, this place also sells apples with many different names such as American Gala apples, green Granny Smith apples, Sireroo green apples, Empire apples, Jass apples... with prices ranging from only 60,000 - 80,000 VND/kg.

Meanwhile, at Lotte Mart supermarket at 229 Tay Son, Hanoi, many types of imported fruits have prices equivalent to or higher than those at Big C and Ocean Mark supermarkets, such as American Fuji apples at 89,000 VND/kg, American Gala apples at 88,500 VND/kg, Ambrosia apples at 109,000 VND/kg, New Zealand Queen apples at 98,500 VND/kg, New Zealand Jazz apples at 79,000 VND/kg, Envy apples at 185,000 VND/kg, etc.

Not only appearing in supermarkets, when surveying fruit stalls on Nguyen Quy Duc, Nguyen Trai, Hue Street, Kim Lien Market, Dong Tac Market, Hom Market..., they all saw apples, grapes, pears for sale that were introduced by the sellers as originating from the US, Australia, New Zealand with identification stickers with prices of 50,000 - 80,000 VND.

On the surface, these fruits look not much different from apples, grapes, and pears sold in supermarkets, except they don't have refrigerators to preserve them.

Looking for answers

To understand the imported fruit market, there is no better place than the Plant Protection Department (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development), because this is the unit responsible for plant quarantine for all fruit batches before importing into Vietnam.

According to the latest report from the Plant Protection Department, in 2013 and the first 3 months of 2014, Vietnam imported over 88,000 tons of apples, more than 27,000 tons of grapes, 741 tons of kiwi, over 35,000 tons of pears and nearly 52 tons of cherries.

Specifically, we imported over 15,000 tons of apples, nearly 7,000 tons of grapes and approximately 60 tons of pears from the US; imported from Australia in 2013 over 94 tons of apples (no shipments were imported in 2014), nearly 3,000 tons of grapes, 34 tons of kiwi, 180 tons of pears and 40 tons of cherries; imported from New Zealand over 2,500 tons of apples (no shipments were imported in 2014), 62 tons of kiwi and 11 tons of cherries. In particular, we imported from China approximately 69,000 tons of apples, 16,000 tons of grapes and 35,000 tons of pears...

Through the data of fruit imports of Vietnam in 2013 and the first 3 months of 2014, it shows that Chinese fruit products account for over 60%. Some markets such as Australia and New Zealand have not imported new shipments since the beginning of the year, so we can confirm that the fruits such as apples and grapes currently on sale in supermarkets in those countries are old fruits imported since 2013.

But the biggest question that needs to be answered here is where are the fruits originating from China such as apples, grapes, pears imported to Vietnam, accounting for over 60%, currently being consumed when most supermarkets and fruit stores in Vietnam do not admit that they sell Chinese goods?

Therefore, it is reasonable for consumers to suspect that the apples, grapes, and pears sold in supermarkets and stores are Chinese goods in disguise. However, when we questioned them, the leaders and officers of the Plant Protection Department themselves admitted that it is very difficult to distinguish between Chinese fruits and those from the US, Australia, and New Zealand because their appearance is not different.

Talking to us about the confusing situation between Chinese fruits and fruits from the US, Australia, and New Zealand, Director of the Department of Agricultural and Rural Development Processing and Salt Industry (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) Nguyen Trong Thua affirmed that 100% of apples, pears, and grapes sold in markets and roadside stalls without refrigerators are of Chinese origin. As for fruits sold in supermarkets, Mr. Thua is also helpless.

According to Mr. Nguyen Trong Thua, there are many reasons why high-end fruit products have such low prices today, in which convenient trade is one of the decisive factors.

"In countries like the US, Australia, and New Zealand, they divide fruits into many different categories, from low to high, so it is very possible that the products exported to Vietnam with low prices are low-quality goods or are about to expire.

I have eaten grade 1 apples from the US and Australia that cost 8-10 USD/kg. They are crispy, fragrant, and delicious, completely different from the quality of imported apples in Vietnam. In my personal experience, if the apple is soft, bland, and the seeds are moldy when cut open, if it is not a Chinese apple, it is about to expire," Mr. Thua shared.

According to vov