Export durian is encountering a paradox: a billion-dollar raw material zone is starving for laboratories, while enterprises willing to spend 20 billion VND to rescue the situation are hesitating due to risks.

Disproportionate testing network distribution: The core bottleneck of agricultural hubs

According to the latest data from the Plant Protection Department, as of early June 2026, the General Administration of Customs of China (GACC) has newly approved 9 additional cadmium (Cd) testing laboratories and 3 Auramine O testing laboratories, raising the total number of eligible facilities nationwide to 25 and 22, respectively. Although testing capacity has increased, the actual distribution exposes a severe geographical imbalance.

In the Southern region—the country's flagship fruit export hub—the testing network remains clustered in limited areas.

The entire region possesses 9 cadmium testing labs and 13 Auramine O testing labs. However, these are predominantly concentrated in Ho Chi Minh City (5 Cd labs, 7 Auramine O labs) and Can Tho City (3 Cd labs, 5 Auramine O labs).

Meanwhile, the core fruit hub of the Mekong Delta remains virtually vacant, with Ca Mau being the sole province owning 1 laboratory for each criteria.

This mismatch injects immense pressure into neighboring enterprises and cooperatives as they enter the peak durian harvest season.

Mr. Vo Tan Loi, Chairman of the Dong Thap Durian Association, reflected: "Up until now, local enterprises have constantly had to send samples over to Can Tho or travel up to Ho Chi Minh City just to conduct testing."

Privatizing laboratories: Exorbitant costs, lingering enterprise skepticism

Faced with an urgent mandate to offload the system and shorten waiting windows, the solution of privatizing to expand private lab networks straight within raw material zones is running into massive barriers.

The primary and most significant hurdle is the exceptionally high investment capital. Mr. Vo Tan Loi frankly shared that to construct a standard-compliant testing room equipped with rigorous machinery systems, the capital an enterprise must deploy is extremely large.

Even a small-scale testing room recently funded by a private entity in Dong Thap Province consumed nearly 20 billion VND. For larger-scale laboratories, the expenses will represent a colossal financial burden.

Beyond financial pressure, private entities must confront regulatory risks and complex evaluation timelines to secure official approval from GACC (China).

The reality of injecting tens of billions of VND while having to endure long waiting windows for official recognition, coupled with broader market volatility, leaves many investors apprehensive and reluctant to deploy capital.

Source: Bao dien tu Dan Viet