Red dragon fruit exports are expected to reach 338 tonnes this year, while Jinhuang mangoes could be exported to Japan next year, Deputy Minister of Agriculture Hu Jong-i (胡忠一) said yesterday.
The ministry on Monday sent a test shipment of 192kg of red dragon fruit to Japan following eight years of negotiations, Hu said, adding that the fruit was well-received and a shipment of 6 tonnes would be sent on Tuesday.
A total of 338 tonnes of the fruit is expected to be exported to Japan by the end of this year, and would increase next year, he said.
Photo: Tsai Tsung-hsien, Taipei Times
“We negotiated with Japan for eight years on the sale of red dragon fruit, and I last met with Japanese officials on May 28,” he said.
Taiwan has exported the white-fleshed variety of dragon fruit to Japan since 2010.
The nation currently exports 50 kinds of fruit to foreign markets, but only 11 are permitted for sale in Japan, Hu said.
“We would also start exporting Jinhuang mangoes to Japan next year,” he said. “We already sell other varieties of mango in Japan, including Haden mangoes and Taiwan’s Aiwen mangoes.”
The ministry hopes to complete bilateral quarantine negotiations with Japan as soon as possible, after which it would instruct farmers on how to handle fruit in accordance with Japan’s quarantine regulations, he said.
The ministry on June 5 finished negotiations with Japan on the export of red dragon fruit, and on Monday, processing plants in Taiwan implemented the packaging requirements set by Japan, Hu said.
Japanese quarantine regulations stipulate that the center point of the fruit must reach 46.5°C for 30 minutes before being shipped, he said.
Taiwan would export red dragon fruit to Japan under the Taiwan Good Agricultural Practice 2020 Plus food processing standards, he said.
The fruit would account for 1 percent of the Japanese market, with plans to increase exports annually, he said.
“Japan currently imports red dragon fruit mainly from Vietnam. Although Taiwan produces less of the fruit, the Taiwanese variant has a higher anthocyanin content, and is sweeter and larger,” he said, adding that the price of the Taiwanese red dragon fruit would be 50 percent more.
Separately, the ministry said that Taiwanese fruit in New Zealand had been selling well, with exports of lychees to New Zealand reaching US$172,000 last year.
Exports to the country would rise after Wellington in April approved the importation of Taiwanese pineapples, it said.
Meanwhile, sales of orchids and grouper to the US, and pork to the Philippines were also rising, with one container of product exported to the countries monthly, it said.
Overall, agriculture exports had increased 4.68 percent since 2016, it said.
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