The 2010 Vietnam International Agriculture Fair opened in the Mekong Delta province of Can Tho on December 6 with 270 domestic and foreign businesses taking part.

The week-long event is aimed at promoting domestic agricultural and rural development, attracting investment in the sector and expanding business links during the integration process.

Of the participants, 40 businesses are from Thailand, China, India, the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Indonesia and Singapore.
On display are machinery, agricultural equipment, production lines, processed products, fertilisers, pesticides, animal feed and medicines, aquatic products, rice, seeds, furniture, fruits and rare plants and animals from the central and southeastern region as well as the Mekong Delta.

A conference will be held for farmers to show their skills in growing grapefruit in various shapes, planting seedless jackfruit in Hau Giang, using combine harvesters and pesticides in Can Tho, raising chickens in Tien Giang and using seed classification and cleansing machines in An Giang.

The organising board will award 17 outstanding farm households from 13 cities and provinces in the Mekong Delta, with 5 million VND each.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade is using the occasion to present certificates of merit to 11 businesses from Long An, Hau Giang, Tien Giang, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Can Tho for their contributions to the country’s economic development and will also present gold medals for the best fertilisers, seeds, veterinary medicines, aquatic products, plastics and pesticides which are competitive in the international market.

During the fair, there will be trade promotions, contract signings, technology transfers and seminars.

The Southern Agricultural Technology Institute, the Mekong Delta Rice Institute, Can Tho University and the Can Tho Agricultural and Rural Development Department will provide farmers with consultancies on cultivation techniques, animal husbandry, harvesting and post harvesting operations, the labour market, vocational training, jobs and capital assistance programmes./.