Meanwhile, businesses and traders are facing supply shortages and are urgently buying the fruit.
Nguyen Van Hoa, a coconut farmer in Cho Gao District of Tien Giang Province said that currently, traders purchase fresh coconuts at the garden at about VND75,000 (US$2.94) – VND80,000 (US$3.14) per dozen including 12 fruits, an increase of more than VND30,000 (US$1.17) per dozen compared to the same period last year.
Especially, the price of dried coconuts has risen to more than VND120,000 (US$4.71) per dozen, nearly double compared to the same period last year. With these prices, coconut gardens are making a profit of VND40,000 (US$1.57)– VND45,000 (US$1.76) per dozen.
Many traders said that the high prices of fresh and dried coconuts are due to the huge demand of consumption at the end of the year.
Besides drinking, coconut water can also be used for cooking, leading to demand exceeding supply so the prices must rise.
Moreover, this year, many coconut-growing localities in the Mekong Delta like Tien Giang and Ben Tre province records plenty of coconut gardens which has suffered from significant damage from black-headed caterpillar attacks, reducing yield.
Ben Tre Province is a coconut-farming hub of the Mekong Delta with more than 80,000 hectares of land for cultivating the fruit, including over 16,000 hectares for production activities according to organic standards on over 9,500 hectares of certified area.
In order to ensure high economic efficiency for coconut trees, the agricultural sector of Ben Tre Province and nearby localities Tra Vinh and Tien Giang is actively supporting coconut farmers in dealing with black-headed caterpillar infestations; providing care techniques and measures responding to drought and salinity during the dry season of 2025.
