Vietnam to export special litchi this year

HANOI, June 11 (Xinhua): Vietnam's northern Hai Duong province, home to a special kind of lichi called "thieu", plans to export 1,000 tonnes of the fruit in 2018, the provincial authorities said on Monday.

"Thieu" litchi trees are grown according to VietGAP or GlobalGAP standards, meeting strict requirements of export markets such as US, Australia and the European Union.

"Thieu" litchi is also exported to the Chinese market.

Hai Duong currently has some 10,500 hectares for litchi cultivation, mainly "thieu" litchi in Thanh Ha district and Chi Linh town, with a total output of some 60,000 tonnes.

The Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade has accelerated negotiations with some foreign countries to intensify export of star-apple and mango to the US market.