Festival aims to showcase Viet Nam rice

Field of dreams: Farmers in the northern province of Yen Bai’s Mu Cang Chai District expect to get a bumper crop this year, estimated to reach a total output of 16,000 tonnes of rice. — VNA/VNS Photo Hong Ky

Product power: Food processing businesses buy rice from farmers in Cai Be District in the southern province of Tien Giang. — VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Vu Co-ordinator of Irrigated Rice Research Consortium Dr Grant Singleton is attending the festival. He talks with Viet Nam News about his work there.Why are you going to attend this festival?I will be representing the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) at the festival. IRRI has a long history of collaborative research in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta. This will be an opportunity to support our Vietnamese partner institutions in the celebration of both mature and emerging technologies arising from our collaboration.What do you expect from this event?I expect to learn more about new developments in rice research and development in Viet Nam. The festival also provides an exciting opportunity to help promote new collaborative projects such as “1 Must do and 5 Reductions” programme [must use certified seed and reduce water abundance, post harvest, use of pesticide and fertiliser and seeding rate] to farmers and policy advisers at the national and provincial level. This particular project provides an innovative package of new natural resource management technologies which will assist farmers to reduce production costs as well as increase their yields in an environmentally sustainable manner.How do you evaluate Vietnamese rice in the world market?Viet Nam is one of the top two nations for rice exports. In a world which is facing mounting pressure on food supplies from increasing populations and an increased frequency of unusual climate events, the steady supply of Vietnamese rice to the world export market is of tremendous international importance. Viet Nam has the advantage of fertile deltas which consistently provide good quality rice for export. When one adds the willingness of Vietnamese farmers to being innovative through readily adopting and adapting new technologies, then Vietnamese rice will continue to appear on more and more Asian plates for decades to come.In your opinion, what should the Vietnamese Government do to further increase rice export?The Government of Viet Nam has an impressive research and extension network to assist farmers in their quest to become innovative farmers who are at the cutting edge of rice technologies. A strengthening of investment in rice research and investment will provide rewarding returns, particularly in the long term. A rapidly emerging issue nationally and internationally is environmental sustainable production of food staples such as rice. We are custodians of lands and waterways for future generations. The Vietnamese Government will benefit local consumers and strengthen its market share globally, if it encourages collaborative research with advanced international research institutes in environmental sustainable production of rice, which if done well, can also lead to substantial increases in efficiency in rice production.What impressed you most in Viet Nam?Viet Nam is a country that has made amazing progress since my first visit in 1994. I have been continually impressed by the openness of my Vietnamese colleagues and of farmers to new ideas, and the strong commitment by my Vietnamese counterparts to make things happen. Viet Nam is a vibrant nation because of the vibrancy of its people. I have indeed been fortunate to have special colleagues in the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development who are not only committed but know how to turn ideas into reality, and will not rest until smallholder farmers have had the opportunity to try these new ideas. — VNS

(29-11-2009)

A new rice festival in Hau Giang Province from this Saturday to Wednesday seeks to celebrate and honour the farmers that produce the staple, and promote the industry to domestic and international markets. Ta Thu Giang reports.

Driving across Vi Thanh Township by motorbike at night has delighted old man Lam Ngoc Quang in recent weeks because of the new lighting that was installed along streets for the Viet Nam Rice Festival.

The first festival of its kind in the country is being organised in southern Hau Giang Province. “We farmers are eagerly bustling away waiting for the festival because we know that it is for us.”

We will have the chance to meet enterprises and sell our products directly to exporters, without using a middleman,” says Quang.

Over the past several months the province has upgraded roads and installed a street lighting system to welcome the festival. Many people with houses on street fronts have decorated their homes for the occasion.

The festival will be an economic, cultural, and social event for Hau Giang, which is seen as the centre of the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta, the country’s largest granary.

It aims at honouring the 10,000 year history of wet rice cultivation in Southeast Asia and showing respect to rice farmers and those involved in exporting Vietnamese rice to the world.

Quang says he has been closely connected to rice for more than 60 years. Past difficulties and experiences working at the local agriculture extension division have helped him gather knowledge on farming and succeed in increasing the variety of rice cultivation by farmers.

“With this festival, I feel farmers are being honoured for our labour. I believe that we will collect many quality varieties to develop cultivation nationwide,” says Quang.

Co-operation opportunity

Representatives from Hau Giang Food Joint Stock Company will attend the festival, among others. They are putting their hopes into a variety of rice called Hau Giang 2.

“The rice is one of the varieties unique to the province. It is a long, soft and fragrant grain of rice,” says company general director Nguyen Hong Chau.

Chau says his company has spent many months preparing to participate in the festival. He expects to meet foreign partners during the four day festival to boost rice exports.

“My company was established last year so not many foreign clients know about us. Our rice has been shipped to several countries, including Malaysia, the Philippines and parts of Africa,” says Chau.

Vice President of the Viet Nam Food Association Pham Van Bay says the country plans to export more than 6 million tonnes of rice this year. The increasing price of rice in the world is a good signal for domestic producers.

“The price for rice has reached VND5,000 per kg. The price is expected to rise higher because almost all local farmers have run out of commodity rice as export demands increase,” says Bay.

He says his association will open the first rice trading floor in Hau Giang Province to help farmers sell their rice directly to export companies.

“Farmers currently grow rice and sell it to middlemen who then sell it to rice mills or enterprises. Then the rice is sold to exporters.

“The trade floor is needed because it will provide a fair trade platform void of price rigging because the public price channel will be made in accordance with supply and demand on the rice market,” says Bay.

Country Head of Olam International Ltd in Viet Nam, Prakash Jhanwer, says it is an honour for him to participate and contribute to the country’s first rice industry festival.

Prakash says Viet Nam is the 2nd largest exporter of rice in the world, therefore quite critical to the global rice market.

“Viet Nam is well known for its fertile Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta, which provides ample supply and good products in terms of quality in African markets,” he says. He expects the entire rice industry supply chain to be present at the festival.

Olam Viet Nam was established 10 years ago in 1991. It is one of the largest buyers of Vietnamese rice for African markets and currently operates seven processing facilities across Dong Nai, Lam Dong, Buon Ma Thuot, Gia Lai and Long An.

“I hope we will meet all industry stakeholders – from farmers to millers to exporters and buyers. This will help to improve the image of Vietnamese rice,” says Parkash.

“We’re focusing on increasing volumes of parboiled rice varieties because it is preferred in some Africa countries. It also fetches a premium over white rice prices. I think the Government will encourage this because it will be more beneficial to the growers and exporters.”

In 2008, Viet Nam’s rice output reached more than 38 million tonnes, 5 million of which were shipped to foreign countries. This year, more than 6 million tonnes are slated for export.

Deputy Chairman of the Hau Giang People’s Committee and Head of the festival’s Organisation Committee Trinh Quang Hung says the country currently ranks 5th in terms of rice production area and 2nd in terms of world rice exports.

“Vietnamese rice has been exported to 120 countries and territories, accounting for 15 per cent of the global rice market share,” he says.

However, the price of rice in the country is still low and the export market is not stable, leading to the fact that rice growers still face many difficulties.

“We don’t have the ambition to solve all existing shortcomings at the festival but at least it will be a destination, a bridge linking thoughts, initiatives and dreams to push up the position of Vietnamese rice in the world,” says Hung.

Festival for all

The festival will be organised along the Xa No Canal which used to be considered as the “rice road” of the Hau Giang Province and was one of the first places in Southern Viet Nam to export rice. In 1913, the Hau Giang region exported more than 1 million tonnes of rice and since 1928 there have been rice warehouses built with the capacity to store more than 100,000 tonnes in the region.

Residents have a strong attachment to this hundred year-old canal. These days there are many “new rice routes”, and other “rice centres”; however, Xa No Canal is still the life line of the Hau River rice route.

Themed “To develop agriculture, farmers and rural areas”, the festival is expected to attract the participation of provinces, cities, rice production and trade enterprises, and rice industry support businesses from around the nation.

Representatives from the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation, International Rice Research Institute, and domestic and international companies with rice partnerships in Viet Nam are expected to advertise their rice production technologies, attend workshops, go sightseeing, learn about wet-rice cultivation, investigate markets, and negotiate and enter into business agreements.

Sow soon: Farmers in expanded Ha Noi’s Dan Phuong District transplant rice seedlings for the Winter-Spring crop. — VNA/VNS Photo Huy Hung

Nearly 20 activities will make up the festival, including the opening and closing ceremonies which will highlight art from the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta and its connection to the wet-rice civilisation. Focus will also fall on Vietnamese cultural characteristics and international workshops on related issues.

Exhibition space will include 550 booths, nearly half devoted to rice production and trade enterprises, and rice support businesses. Ninety-two booths will be reserved for provinces and cities from around the nation, and 188 will highlight Vietnamese commodities for rural areas. An indoor exhibition area and a 1,800m2 outdoor area to present several varieties of live wet rice plants will be hosted by Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Other activities will include: a procession of 119 decorated cars and motorcycles from ministries, cities, provinces, CaravanViet and the Viet Nam Car Forum; Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta Khmer boat racing; a food and drink festival; an amateur southern traditional music party; a unicorn, lion and dragon performance, among others.

Awards ceremonies will be held for the final of the “Nationwide good farming supporter” contest; farmers with special agricultural production initiatives; corporate trademarks and product trademarks in connection with rice (called the Integration Shennong Cup); and prestigious rice trade and export enterprises of Viet Nam. — VNS

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