61st ICC Session & Ministerial Meeting, International Coconut Community (ICC)
The 61st Ministerial Conference organized by the International Coconut Community (ICC) in Thailand from November 18 to 21, 2025 with the presence of Ministers of member countries. The Vietnam Coconut Association was approved by the Prime Minister as the representative of Vietnam in the international coconut community. Mr. Cao Ba Dang Khoa, Deputy President and General Secretary of the Vietnam Coconut Association was nominated as the Chief Representative of the Vietnam Coconut Association in the International Coconut Community. Attending the Conference with the delegation were also Vietnamese coconut industry enterprises such as Thabico Tien Giang Company, Hung Phat Hung Company, Au My Company...
The Conference approved the issues of coconut industry management policies in each country, action plans and contingency plans to respond to climate change, fluctuations in raw material prices affecting the production capacity of the coconut industry in each country. Countries reported on the area of coconut plantations, the age of coconut trees; the status of intercropping coconut trees and the assessment of the effectiveness of intercropping; the contribution rate of the coconut industry to the export turnover of each country and the contribution rate to the gross domestic product GDP of each country; At this Conference, ICC is interested in the issue of coconut tree health care; the average FOB price of each key product such as coconut oil, coconut water, coconut milk powder, handicrafts, coconut fiber... and the assessment of the potential for application and development of products; Countries also reported on the competitiveness and export markets of each key coconut product.
The Vietnamese representative reported on the coconut growing area, total output of each coconut-growing province, the average price of coconut products in the last 3 years and the export market of Vietnamese coconut products to more than 90 countries and territories. In particular, Vietnam proactively reported on the research and production of specialized organic fertilizers for coconut trees, and biological pesticides for coconut trees researched by domestic research agencies; regarding group 1 products, the food industry, the Vietnam Coconut Association reported that cakes and biscuits with over 15% of coconut ingredients are also new products being exported to many countries. However, due to the conditions of cultivating Vietnamese coconut trees belonging to the people's savings, intercropping has been a tradition up to now. Therefore, it is difficult to accurately calculate the planting area and fruiting age of coconuts, and it is difficult to manage diseases and pests, especially when intercropping coconut trees, which are susceptible to cross-contamination with fertilizers and pesticides of other crops. The Vietnam Coconut Association is recommending that people concentrate their coconut gardens for easy management. Mr. Cao Ba Dang Khoa, Deputy President and General Secretary of the Vietnam Coconut Association, representing the Vietnamese coconut industry under the management of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, has proposed that the International Coconut Community - ICC establish a portal on raw coconut prices of member countries so that the business community of member countries can trade and exchange raw materials with each other, limit the situation of sudden price increases like in the recent past, or avoid the situation of localized declines in raw coconut prices like now; The Vietnam Coconut Association also sent an invitation to the coconut and coconut-related business community in ICC member countries to organize exchange programs, trade, share experiences, share market information, and exchange technology;
In the joint statement of each country, the Vietnam Coconut Association promoted cooperation, linking and exchanging management experience, science and technology, and market price information among member countries, emphasizing the focal point is ICC. The Vietnamese coconut industry wishes to cooperate and exchange with member countries through many forms of conferences, seminars, trade... between coconut farmers and the coconut business community.
The Vietnam Coconut Association voted to support the Joint Statement of the International Coconut Community for the fiscal year 2026 - 2027. The conference ended with a Joint Statement agreed upon by member countries, including 10 points.
