Strong export growth, expanding market access, and a high processing rate are creating a solid foundation for passion fruit to become one of Vietnam’s leading fruit and vegetable export commodities.

Once considered a relatively small-scale crop, passion fruit is emerging as one of Vietnam’s fastest-growing fruit and vegetable products. Rising production volumes, expanding export markets, and increasing participation from processing enterprises are laying the groundwork for the industry to join the group of billion-dollar agricultural exports.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, Vietnam is currently among the world’s top ten producers and exporters of passion fruit. Over the past five years alone, both production and export turnover have increased by 300%, transforming passion fruit into one of the highest-value products within Vietnam’s fruit and vegetable sector.

This growth momentum has continued into 2026. In April alone, passion fruit export turnover reached nearly USD 29 million, representing a 60% increase compared to the same period last year. This was the strongest growth rate among Vietnam’s top ten fruit and vegetable export products.

During the first four months of 2026, cumulative passion fruit exports exceeded USD 76 million, up nearly 40% year-on-year and accounting for 3.73% of the country’s total fruit and vegetable export turnover.

Vietnam currently cultivates more than 12,000 hectares of passion fruit, with annual production reaching approximately 200,000 tonnes. With the ability to harvest up to three crops per year, passion fruit has become a highly profitable crop for many localities, particularly in the Central Highlands region.

Unlike many fruit varieties that depend heavily on fresh consumption, passion fruit benefits from strong integration into the food processing industry. Approximately 80% of total production is currently purchased by enterprises for processing or export, providing relatively stable market access for growers.

Products such as juice, syrup, concentrated passion fruit, and ingredients used in beverages, confectionery, and ice cream are increasingly popular in international markets.

Stable demand from the European Union, combined with Vietnam’s official export access to the Chinese market, is creating additional growth opportunities for the industry.

One notable characteristic of the sector is the active participation of enterprises throughout the entire value chain, from variety research and raw material area development to processing and export activities.

To date, Vietnam has officially approved 43 passion fruit varieties, serving both fresh fruit exports and processing requirements.

The Central Highlands remains the country’s primary production region, accounting for more than 86% of cultivated area and approximately 92.5% of total national output.

In addition, provinces such as Nghe An and Son La are continuing to expand cultivation areas to meet the growing demand of domestic and international markets.

Source: Bao Cong Thuong