Laos’ banana exports total US$134 million in first half of 2021

In January, the value of banana exports stood at US$22.8, rising to US$23 million in February and US$34 million in March before dropping to US$22 million in April, US$17 million in May, and US$15 in June.
Exports slumped due to trade restrictions because of the pandemic, according to the Ministry of Industry and Commerce
Laos sold most of the crop to China and Thailand, with the value increasing to about US$227.4 million in 2020.
The amount of bananas grown for export has steadily increased, as more plantations created under contract farming become ready for harvesting.
However, the number of investors and banana plantations has declined after the government stopped granting concessions for new plantations and ended agreements with companies that had violated regulations.
The government says banana plantations should be operated in line with good agricultural practices and its policy on clean, green and sustainable agricultural development.

Export growth has been driven by increased production under Laos’ contract farming system.
The shift in China’s banana sourcing towards South-East Asian countries has also played a role in boosting banana exports from Laos.
Given the success of the banana industry in China, the Lao government is working with other fresh produce growers to increase quality in the hope of gaining access to more markets.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has drawn up a list of crops it will prioritise in negotiating access to Chinese markets. The list includes sweet potatoes, jackfruit, longans, oranges, grapefruit, dragon fruit, chillies, passion fruit, green beans, peanuts, eggplant, cabbage and pumpkins.
Other major commercial crops are rubber, cassava, raw coffee, sugar and fruit (watermelon, passion fruit and tamarind) with the total export value of agricultural produce in 2020 reaching almost US$1 billion.

In 2018, Laos earned US$600 million from the export of agricultural produce, rising to US$750.8 million in 2019 and US$943 million in 2020. About 80 percent of the produce was sold to China.