Vietnamese mangoes are about to enter the US market.

The US Department of Agriculture has just published in the Federal Register a proposal to seek public comments on contributions, additions, and amendments to regulations allowing fresh mangoes from Vietnam to be imported into the continental United States.

"With this move, it can be almost certain that fresh mango will be the sixth Vietnamese fruit that the US will allow to be imported for consumption from the end of this year," the Vietnam Trade Office in the United States assessed.

Every year the United States must import about 400,000 tons of fresh mangoes. (Illustration: KT)

However, to be able to enter this potential but also very strict market, the Vietnam Trade Office in the United States stated that fresh mango products from Vietnam will have to undergo strict standards of the control system including regulations on gardens, irradiation treatment and customs inspection at the port of arrival...

Accordingly, fresh mangoes can only be imported into the US from Vietnam in commercial shipments and must be accompanied by a food safety certificate from the Vietnam Plant Protection Department (NPPO).

The US Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) only allows the importation of fresh mangoes from Vietnam into the continental United States when they have been subjected to mandatory irradiation at a minimum dose of 400 Gy, to eliminate all insects except for certain species such as pupae and adult lepidopterans, as this dose is not sufficient to kill them, but is sufficient to kill their larvae.

Macrophoma mangiferae fungus hazards must also be treated well in advance of harvest; fruit must come from orchards that have been extensively sprayed with fungicides during growth;

Each export shipment of fresh mangoes must have a phytosanitary certificate issued by the Plant Protection Department of Vietnam, which must clearly state that the fruits in the shipment have been quarantined and are free of pests such as Macrophoma mangiferae, Xanthomonas campestri and Mangiferaeindicae.

According to experts' calculations, with the decision to allow the import of fresh mangoes from Vietnam, it is expected that Vietnam can export about 3,000 tons of fresh mangoes to the United States every year, equivalent to nearly 1% of the country's fresh mango imports and equal to the domestic output of the United States.

Currently, each year the United States must import approximately 400,000 tons of fresh mangoes, mainly from countries such as Mexico, Peru, Ecuador, Brazil and Guatemala, to meet domestic consumption needs./.

According to VOV