Vietnam has seen strong growth in rice exports in the first five months of this year, shipping nearly 2.9 million tonnes abroad for 1.41 billion USD, up 5.1 percent and 18.9 percent, respectively, year-on-year.
The recent signing of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), which is expected to take effect from early 2020, has opened the door wider for Vietnamese farm produce to make inroads into the more than 500-million people strong market.
The Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Development is working with localities to examine the development of pepper farming with a view to designing a sustainable growth orientation for the sector between now and 2030.
Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue has asked agencies to enhance linkages between cities and provinces nationwide and other countries to form a global network for the OCOP programme.
Trung An Hi-tech Farming JSC in the Mekong Delta has been exporting rice under foreign brand names for many years though it is itself one of the biggest rice exporters in Vietnam.
The pepper industry plans to reduce the area under the spice and focus on improving quality to ensure long-term growth, according to the Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Development.
After a long period of hesitation, the Vietnam National Coffee Corporation (Vinacafe) is being pushed towards equitisation once more by the Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Development (MARD).
Repairing newly-built substandard offshore fishing vessels is a matter of great economic, political and social significance that should be done immediately, Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung has said.
An additional 325 communes were recognised as new style rural areas in January - April, 2017, a rise of 3.6 percent compared to end of 2016, announced the Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Development (MARD).