BANGKOK(NNT) – The COVID-19 outbreak has caused Thai fruit exports to slow down due to the lockdown of many partner countries. The Ministry of Commerce, has therefore, sought ways to solve the problem by launching a campaign to increase domestic consumption and designating May and June “Thai Fruits Golden Months”.
Under the Thai Fruits Golden Months campaign, the Commerce Ministry is collaborating with seven e-commerce platforms including Thailandpost, Shopee, Lazada, JD Central, Cloudmall, JatujakMall.com and The Hub Thailand to sell premium fresh fruit of export quality such as mangoes, durians, mangosteen and other fruit that will gradually enter the markets but cannot at present be exported to overseas markets.
The Department of Internal Trade has also distributed 200,000 boxes to fruit farmers for online sales. The campaign is expected to be supported by 50 farmer groups, community enterprises, and cooperatives as well as exporters. There are currently over 60 products for sale on various platforms.
The Department of International Trade Promotion (DITP) has continued to organize online business matching events between foreign buyers and Thai exporters. There have recently been further trade negotiations with South Korean importers of mangoes from Thailand. During the year, South Korea imported at least 3,200 tons of mangoes valued at approximately 15 million US dollars. There is also a plan for business matching with fruit importers from South Korea and Malaysia this May, and the DITP will arrange a business matching activity with fruit importers from the United Arab Emirates and Egypt in June.
