UKVFTA pushing up coffee exports to UK

Vietnam’s coffee exports to the UK last year posted impressive results and are expected to see stronger growth thanks to the UK-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA).

According to figures from the Import and Export Department at the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT), Vietnam’s coffee exports to the UK in 2021 reached 34,650 tons, worth $66.16 million. Vietnam’s coffee products also accounted for 17.04 per cent of the UK’s total coffee imports. Mr. Luong Hoang Thai, Director of the Multilateral Trade Policy Department at the MoIT, said Vietnam’s agricultural products in general and its coffee in particular have major potential in the UK.

Since the UKVFTA took effect, agricultural exports to the UK have grown rapidly. The MoIT therefore suggests that Vietnamese businesses quickly take full advantage of the opportunities brought about by the agreement, as the UK is to eliminate 99.2 per cent of tariff lines, or 99.7 per cent of Vietnam’s export goods.

The UK is also a very competitive market, with imports from many countries, so Vietnamese coffee enterprises must meet the increasingly strict requirements in the market to keep exports stable and ensure that products are suitable with consumer tastes in the UK. They also need to actively build and develop customer relationships with major distribution groups in the UK, while applying modern processing technology to increase product quality.