Australian peaches and nectarines will soon be making their way back into Vietnam. Summer fruit growers lost access to the market 10 years ago when Vietnamese authorities decided a phytosanitary protocol was needed to prevent pests and diseases entering the country.

Summerfruit Export Development Alliance chairman Ian McAlister said the reopening of the market was a good development for the industry.

"I anticipate with the right promotion it could be a significant destination for us," Mr McAlister said. While the protocols between the Australian and Vietnamese governments have been signed off, Mr McAlister says nectarines and peaches cannot be dispatched until the specifics of the work plan are finalised.

"There could be a small amount of trade in March and April, but by the looks of it, I think we'll probably start with serious volume early next year in November, early December," he said.

Federal Agriculture Minister David Littleproud says his department is working with the industry to enable trial exports in the coming months.

"Vietnam is a priority market for our premium produce and pleased that the completion of technical negotiations will mean our peaches and nectarines will be able to access this valuable market," he said.

Negotiations hampered by COVID

While Mr Littleproud said the $85.9 million Agri-Business Expansion Initiative supported the department's efforts to accelerate market access outcomes in Vietnam, industry representatives said it could have been implemented faster if face-to-face discussions had been able to go ahead.

There had been plans to finalise the protocols to resume trade at a meeting in April 2020 before technical representatives from Vietnam visited Australia to carry out audits.

But instead, discussions were conducted via video conferencing and a virtual visit took place in January.

"It would have been a lot easier to bring their experts out here to deal with our experts and explain the finer points of the protocol, but COVID slowed everything down," Mr McAlister said.

"Videos and Zoom meetings are nowhere near like face-to-face, so probably added 18 months to the process." 

According to Mr McAlister, the protocol for Vietnam is very similar to what has been established for the Chinese market. 

"Vietnam added one more pest which is the oriental fruit moth, most of the farms have been trapping for that, in Swan Hill for the last 12 months," he said.

"Cobram and Shepparton have been trapping for 30 years so it would be no different to them. We've also got the ability to do radiation treatment at Steritech in Melbourne."

The protocol does not enable plums or apricots to be exported.

Mr McAlister said plums should have been on the original application.

"It was a bureaucratic mistake and I'm not sure how long it will take to get it added, but we're definitely going to be pushing hard because plums are a big selling item in Vietnam," he said.