On morning of April 23rd, Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection (Ministry of Agriculture and Environment) announced that on April 22nd, in Dong Thap, the first shipment of fresh Vietnamese pomelos was officially exported to Australian market. This marks successful opening of market for fresh Vietnamese pomelos and affirms ability to meet technical requirements, biosafety control and stringent quality standards of one of the world's leading high-standard markets.
This first shipment of pomelos was implemented with participation of businesses and related units in production, processing and logistics chain. The process involves coordination between production, packaging, post-harvest processing, irradiation facilities and logistics service providers to ensure full compliance with technical requirements of importing country, creating a synchronized chain of operations from goods preparation, post-harvest processing, irradiation processing, logistics organization to import and distribution connections in Australian market.
The first shipment of 940.5 kg of fresh pomelos, transported by air, completed all relevant procedures and cleared customs on April 22nd. In addition, a subsequent commercial shipment of 5 tonnes, using raw materials from Dong Thap province, is being implemented according to export plan.
After import, the first shipment was introduced and offered at Sydney Market (Australia) to promote product and directly reach distribution partners and consumers in this market.
According to Australian regulations, imported pomelo shipments must undergo a rigorous phytosanitary and biosecurity inspection process at the port of entry, conducted by competent Australian authority. This authority reviews documentation, including Phytosanitary Certificate and related papers and conducts physical inspections of packaging, labeling and storage conditions. In addition, samples are taken from the shipment for phytosanitary testing.
Sampling scale depends on size of the shipment, potentially up to 600 fruits for large shipments. If violations of phytosanitary or food safety regulations are detected, the shipment may be subject to processing, re-export or destruction as per Australian regulations; simultaneously, competent Australian authority and Vietnamese phytosanitary agency will cooperate to ensure full compliance with import requirements.
Clearance of the first shipment of Vietnamese pomelos into Australian market is a significant milestone for pomelo industry. It serves as an important foundation for further expanding Vietnamese pomelo exports and provides additional impetus for other Vietnamese fresh fruits to access demanding markets in the future.

Source: Vitic/ congthuong.vn