Once hailed as the "golden fruit" driving billions of dollars in export turnover, dragon fruit is now seeing prices slump across several regions, with growers reporting farm-gate rates falling below production costs.

For over a week, dragon fruit farmers across the Mekong Delta and Lam Dong (formerly Binh Thuan) have grown increasingly anxious as prices plummeted compared to the same period last year.

Growers on edge

Hong Phong, a farmer in Tan Thuan Binh Commune (Dong Thap), said his five cong (approx. 5,000 sq m) of dragon fruit are nearing harvest, yet tumbling market prices have left him fearing looming losses.

“Unsorted farm-gate prices are hovering around just VND 3,000–6,000 per kilogram. At this level, making a profit is virtually impossible. Fertilizer, pesticide, and labor costs have all soared this year,” Phong lamented.

From a procurement perspective, Huynh Ngoc Ngoan (locally known as Ngoan Thanh Long), a trader operating across Tay Ninh (formerly Long An) and Dong Thap (formerly Tien Giang), confirmed that red-flesh dragon fruit prices in both areas have hit their lowest levels of the year, with unsorted fruit fetching just VND 3,000–6,000/kg at the orchard.

When sorted by grade, Grade 3 fruit averages VND 5,000–7,000/kg, Grade 4 ranges from VND 2,000–3,000/kg, while culls fetch a mere VND 1,000/kg. Many culls are even being abandoned in the fields uncollected, as processing facilities face an oversupply of raw material.

“Compared to previous months, prices have fallen by at least VND 5,000/kg. Early in the season, unsorted fruit sold for VND 10,000–12,000/kg, and even culls were bought by traders for dried fruit or juice processing at VND 4,000/kg. Under current conditions, growers face imminent losses because procurement prices have fallen below production costs,” Ngoan said.

Ngoan attributed the slump to prolonged downpours, which degraded fruit quality for export and increased cull rates, thereby depressing market values. Domestic procurement prices also remain heavily dictated by consumer demand in China and major packing facilities.

At present, supply is outpacing demand in the Chinese market, spilling over to drag down domestic purchasing rates.

“I see that dragon fruit growers currently lack access to baseline export pricing data. Trade prices remain largely at the mercy of traders and large warehouses. Having a price-monitoring entity as a purchasing benchmark could prevent the market from falling into the recurring cycle of 'bumper crop, plummeting prices' or waiting for rescue campaigns,” Ngoan added.

In Lam Dong (formerly Binh Thuan), the outlook is equally grim, even though the region typically commands higher prices than other cultivation hubs. Compared to earlier months, prices for both red- and white-flesh dragon fruit have contracted substantially.

On the afternoon of September 6, off-season, artificial-light-induced white-flesh dragon fruit of high visual grade stood at only VND 3,000–6,000/kg, depending on appearance and warehouse pricing. A handful of large-volume orchards with prime-looking fruit could negotiate VND 7,000–8,500/kg, though such cases were rare. Traders noted that these quotes did, however, represent a slight improvement from early September.

For artificial-light red-flesh dragon fruit, premium produce commanded VND 10,000–12,000/kg, while unsorted batches ranged between VND 7,000–8,000/kg.

Bich Thuy, a grower in Ham Thuan Nam, said traders offered just VND 3,000–4,000/kg for unsorted off-season white-flesh fruit—down from VND 11,000–12,000/kg for premium grades in previous years. According to Thuy, current offers sit well below production costs.

Dragon fruit under off-take pressure

Speaking with VietNamNet, Huynh Canh, Chairman of the Binh Thuan Dragon Fruit Association, noted that export prices in Binh Thuan have remained low since the Lunar New Year for both white- and red-flesh varieties. Aside from visual aesthetics, pricing hinges largely on export destinations—predominantly China.

“For mass producers, procurement prices depend almost entirely on the Chinese market. Abundant supplies in both Vietnam and China have kept prices depressed, pushing several orchards into the red. However, households farming under GlobalGAP standards are still securing positive returns of around VND 20,000/kg,” Canh said.

Assessing the broader industry, Nguyen Van Muoi, Deputy Secretary-General of the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association (VINAFRUIT), noted that Vietnam’s dragon fruit exports totaled nearly USD 322 million in the first seven months of the year, a 1.6% dip year-on-year.

China remained the primary buyer, accounting for over 57% of total shipments. However, export turnover to China dropped 15% year-on-year in the first seven months to over USD 184 million.

Nevertheless, the market has seen bright spots elsewhere. Notably, Thailand ramped up purchases of Vietnamese dragon fruit during the seven-month period, generating USD 18.7 million in export turnover—a surge of nearly 154% over the prior year.

Over the long term, Muoi stressed that sustainable growth requires shifting the focus from yield to upgrading quality, lowering production costs, stabilizing off-take channels, and diversifying export markets.

Furthermore, instead of expanding acreage, farmers and agribusinesses must proactively embrace sustainable farming practices under GlobalGAP standards, adopt energy-efficient lighting technology, and invest in deep processing (juices, dried dragon fruit, and confectionery) to alleviate pressure on fresh fruit consumption.

Source: Bao VietNamNet