The Mekong Delta is harvesting a bumper summer-autumn rice crop thoughthe weather has been unfavourable, according to the Ministry ofAgriculture and Rural Development.
More than 9 million tonnes are expected to be harvested, 143,000 tonnes higher than a year ago because of increased yields.
The country's rice bowl planted rice on more than 1.6 million hectares, fractionally down from last year's summer-autumn crop.
Butfarmers are likely to be hit by unstable demand and low prices.Speaking at a seminar in Kien Giang Province last week, Deputy Ministerof Agriculture and Rural Development Le Quoc Doanh said despite someachievements, rice production in the delta faces many problems likeunstable rice demand that need to be resolved.
The region should focus on improving rice quality and increase export value, he said.
Inthe summer-autumn crop, average-quality rice varieties are grown on 25percent of the area, according to statistics from local agriculturedepartments though the ministry's Plant Cultivation Department haswarned it should not exceed 10 percent.
Next the deltaplans to grow the autumn-winter rice crop on 827,000ha, 12,256ha morethan a year earlier, mostly high-quality varieties.
In Vinh Long Province, for instance, high-quality varieties will make up 80 percent of the output.
Theautumn-winter crop is sown during the rainy season and harvested inmostly dry weather, meaning its quality is superior to that of thesummer-autumn rice. It is also easier to sell because the output is notlarge. But the crop faces risks like the annual flooding in the MekongRiver.
Mai Van Nhin, deputy chairman of the KienGiangProvince People's Committee, said the delta provinces should scheduletheir sowing properly to avoid the floods.
Upstreamprovinces should carefully calculate the release of flood water to avoidlosses in downstream provinces, he said. All provinces should regularlyconsolidate their dykes and irrigation works to ensure safety for theautumn-winter rice.
Doanh said the Plant Protection Department should improve its forecast of rice diseases.
The National Agriculture Extension Centre needed to propagate farming techniques on the media, he said.-VNA
More than 9 million tonnes are expected to be harvested, 143,000 tonnes higher than a year ago because of increased yields.
The country's rice bowl planted rice on more than 1.6 million hectares, fractionally down from last year's summer-autumn crop.
Butfarmers are likely to be hit by unstable demand and low prices.Speaking at a seminar in Kien Giang Province last week, Deputy Ministerof Agriculture and Rural Development Le Quoc Doanh said despite someachievements, rice production in the delta faces many problems likeunstable rice demand that need to be resolved.
The region should focus on improving rice quality and increase export value, he said.
Inthe summer-autumn crop, average-quality rice varieties are grown on 25percent of the area, according to statistics from local agriculturedepartments though the ministry's Plant Cultivation Department haswarned it should not exceed 10 percent.
Next the deltaplans to grow the autumn-winter rice crop on 827,000ha, 12,256ha morethan a year earlier, mostly high-quality varieties.
In Vinh Long Province, for instance, high-quality varieties will make up 80 percent of the output.
Theautumn-winter crop is sown during the rainy season and harvested inmostly dry weather, meaning its quality is superior to that of thesummer-autumn rice. It is also easier to sell because the output is notlarge. But the crop faces risks like the annual flooding in the MekongRiver.
Mai Van Nhin, deputy chairman of the KienGiangProvince People's Committee, said the delta provinces should scheduletheir sowing properly to avoid the floods.
Upstreamprovinces should carefully calculate the release of flood water to avoidlosses in downstream provinces, he said. All provinces should regularlyconsolidate their dykes and irrigation works to ensure safety for theautumn-winter rice.
Doanh said the Plant Protection Department should improve its forecast of rice diseases.
The National Agriculture Extension Centre needed to propagate farming techniques on the media, he said.-VNA
