The U.S. has surpassed China as Vietnam’s largest coconut export market, buying US$82 million worth of the fruit in the first seven months of this year, 100% up year-on-year.
It accounted for 27% of Vietnam’s $306 million exports, a 40% increase, according to official data.

Exporters attributed the jump to strong demand from retail chains and the beverage industry amid the rising popularity of fresh Vietnamese coconuts in that market.

China, for long the top buyer, only increased imports marginally to $67 million.

But several other markets saw high growth. Exports to Australia rose by 77%, while the United Arab Emirates and Spain doubled purchases. Shipments to Puerto Rico were up nearly eightfold.

Nguyen Dinh Tung, CEO of major exporter Vina T&T, said his company ships 80-90 containers of various fruits every month to the U.S., with coconut accounting for a large portion.

Its fruit exports to the U.S. increased by 25% year-on-year, mostly unaffected by the new tariffs, he said.

Dang Phuc Nguyen, general secretary of the Vietnam Fruits & Vegetables Association, said that demand for coconuts in the U.S., China and Middle Eastern markets is rising sharply even as global supply remains limited, making Vietnamese coconuts increasingly in demand.

Since the U.S. opened its market to fresh coconuts from Vietnam in 2023, Vietnamese companies have rapidly expanded their distribution chains, diversified products and improved packaging quality, giving them a clear advantage over rivals from other countries.

However, Vietnam itself imports coconuts for processing. This year they have exceeded $31 million, a 20-fold jump.

Domestically, coconut prices averaged VND19,000 (US$0.72) per nut in the first half of the year, the highest ever.

Retail prices of top-grade coconuts rose to VND25,000, six times the price just four years ago.

Coconut plantations now cover 200,000 hectares nationwide, producing around two million tons of the fruit annually.

The number of processing factories increased from eight in 2015 to 45 in 2024, with many large companies entering the fray.

Source: Vnexpress
25/09/2025