3.8 million ha reserved for growing rice

Vietnam will keep 3.8 million ha to grow rice to ensure national food security, said Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Bui Ba Bong on October 6.

Bong chaired a meeting to review a master plan for the country’s rice cultivation by 2020 with a vision towards 2030, to maintain the necessary acreage for the country’s most important crop, as Vietnam is the world’s second largest rice exporter.

The report delivered at the meeting warned that the total acreage available for rice cultivation mapped out by provinces and cities nationwide for 2020 and towards 2030 is only 3.68 million ha, down by 408,800 ha compared with 2009 and 120,000 ha less than the target.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment agreed to re-adjust the planning of 33 provinces and cities, mostly in the country’s two major rice bowls, the Red River Delta and the Mekong Delta.

The report also put forward solutions to manage and use the land fund, including State investment in rice growing areas to improve productivity, issue encouraging policies for localities to retain their current rice acreage and set up a price stabilisation fund to ensure a 30 percent profit for rice growers.

According to the Vietnam Food Association, Vietnam is likely to export 7.2 million tonnes of rice this year.

In the first nine months of this year, the country shipped a record 5.55 million tonnes of rice, worth 2.56 billion USD, up nearly 12 percent in volume and 14.5 percent in value.

Tags: Vietnam agriculture