 |
| Faced with the sharp increase in world rice prices, how should Vietnam seize the opportunity and still ensure national food security? (Source: Vietnam Agriculture Newspaper) |
Food is already facing the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the impact of El Nino, rising world inflation, and world rice prices are increasing day by day as Russia officially withdrew from the Agreement on grain exports through the Black Sea; and most recently, India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) issued bans on rice exports.
Concerns about drought caused by El Nino in Asian countries will greatly affect rice production, and high inflation has caused the demand for food reserves in many countries to increase sharply. Rice is an indispensable food in the meals of Asian people.
Therefore, in recent days, the ban on exporting regular white rice from India (the largest rice supplier to the world market) has caused Indians and other Asian communities to rush to buy rice for stockpiling. Immediately after that, the UAE also ordered a halt on rice exports, causing rice prices to heat up day by day.
To affirm the important role, maintain the position and prestige of the Vietnamese rice industry in the global food supply chain and contribute to ensuring world food security according to Vietnam's commitments, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development proposed that the Prime Minister consider issuing a directive on strengthening rice exports in the new situation.
Mr. Nguyen Nhu Cuong, Director of the Department of Crop Production, affirmed that this year's rice supply in our country is quite abundant, according to the plan, in 2023, the whole country will plant about 7.1 million hectares. Through inspections in the Red River Delta, Central region, Central Highlands and Mekong River Delta, rice growth and development are very good, if there are no natural disasters or unusual diseases on a large scale, this crop will be a record-breaking year.
In the Autumn-Winter rice crop, the Department of Crop Production also directed the planting of an additional 50,000 hectares of rice. As for dealing with the El Nino phenomenon, we have experience and solutions, so the damage will be reduced. Therefore, according to Mr. Nguyen Nhu Cuong, our country is completely confident in seizing the opportunity in prices to increase rice exports while still ensuring complete domestic food security.
“In 2022, Vietnam's rice output will reach 42.7 million tons but it will still export 7.13 million tons of rice. This year, Vietnam produced over 43.2 million tons, of course, it will export more than last year's record. Prices will increase to a certain extent, but with the current national reserves, there will be no impact on supply,” Mr. Cuong affirmed.
Experts also said that Vietnam had learned a lesson in 2008 when rice prices increased very high but Vietnam banned exports, so it missed the opportunity. Because India may stabilize the situation, domestic rice prices will return to the market, at which time rice prices will decrease. Therefore, according to Mr. Tran Thanh Hai, Deputy Director of the Import-Export Department (Ministry of Industry and Trade), this is a good opportunity for Vietnamese export enterprises.
“This is a very positive signal for Vietnamese export enterprises to boost rice exports in the coming time. However, traders must also have calculations and tools to prevent risks, including price risks and contract risks,” said Mr. Hai.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said that rice production in 2023 is expected to reach over 43 million tons of paddy, in addition to ensuring domestic food security for 100 million people, processing, breeding, and raising livestock, it will completely ensure the export of over 7.5 million tons of rice and earn 4.1 billion USD.
It is forecasted that the demand for imported rice from other countries will continue to increase in the last months of the year, and in the future, high-quality rice will be in demand in many markets. Therefore, Mr. Le Thanh Hoa, Deputy Director of the Department of Quality, Processing and Market Development (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) said that Vietnam needs to focus on producing quality rice and building a brand to always achieve high export value.
“The high demand for rice in the world market is a strength for Vietnam to boost exports in the coming time. Quality is a decisive factor for Vietnam's reputation and brand, so businesses must build quality products and bring their brands to the import market,” Mr. Hoa noted.
In the long term, the domestic rice industry will continue to promote production linkages along the value chain, improve quality, save costs to increase profits and develop sustainably, in line with the Strategy for developing Vietnam's rice export market to 2030, as well as the Project "Sustainable development of 1 million hectares of high-quality rice cultivation associated with green growth in the Mekong Delta region".
Source
Comment (0)