The fresh goods e-commerce transaction volume in China was projected to reach RMB 404 billion (USD 60.3 billion) per year in 2020. The growth rate of fresh goods e-commerce in China has in recent years outpaced the overall growth rate of e-commerce. Chinese consumers are not only buying more fresh fruit and other fresh goods by e-commerce, but also are dedicating a higher ratio of their online expenditures to these products. With China’s fresh goods e-commerce transaction volume projected to exceed RMB 800 billion (USD 119.4 billion) by 2023, the share of both China’s domestic fruit production and its fresh fruit imports sold by e-commerce is set to continue growing in coming years.
As the e-commerce market in China grows extremely fast, so do digital solutions for trade and financial transfers. They offer new opportunities but also new challenges to smaller neighbouring countries wanting to access the Chinese agricultural market. The market research report for local agri-businesses in Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Vietnam regarding fresh fruit e-commerce in China was conducted by MZ Marketing Communications and Produce report on behalf of GIZ SRECA. It intends to inform and present about alternative distribution channels for fresh fruit exporters from the three countries. Introducing the vast e-commerce landscape for fresh fruits in China it gives insights on main e-commerce businesses, regulations, retail models, distribution and logistics channels, branding and marketing as well as e-commerce payment services.
The report serves as a first introduction into the topic of fresh fruit e-commerce and will be utilised by GIZ SRECA and its partners in combination with product specific export guidelines for capacity building of local small and medium sized enterprises within the agricultural sector in Cambodia, Lao PDR and Vietnam. Additionally, the developments in e-commerce in China can be used as examples for further development of the national fresh fruit e-commerce markets in the three countries as well as other Southeast Asian countries.