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THE strong drought hitting, some of the Philippine's key source of rice imports, could disrupt the government’s plan to build up reserves of the staple held by the National Food Authority (NFA), an industry official said. "There are many countries, not only us, hit by drought. And then everybody will be trying to get rice from these rice-producing areas but they themselves are also hit by drought . That's where price will be critical," said Philippine Confederation of Grains Associations (Philcongrains) President Herculano Co adding that funds for procurement will be crucial for the country's imports.

Fi Vietnam, the only dedicated food and beverage ingredients exhibition in the region, will take place in Ho Chi Minh City and acts as a gateway for organisations wishing to capitalize on this unique market. In 2015, the exhibition brought 4,444 local and regional visitors and 100+ exhibitors together. The focus of Fi Vietnam is to provide attendees business, networking and learning - the right ingredients for success. Unlike other events, Fi Vietnam is dedicated exclusively to food and beverage ingredients, not finished foods. This focus ensures that we meet the needs of food and beverage ingredients professionals at all levels of the supply chain.

Economic growth in developing East Asian countries is expected to ease in the next two years as the slowdown in China and sluggish pricing for commodities linger, according to new forecast released Sunday by the World Bank. The developing economies in the region, which include China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia and several smaller countries, will grow 6.3% this year and 6.2% on average in 2017 and 2018, down from 6.5% in 2015, the Washington, D.C.-based organization estimated.

Farming has changed over the years. In the old days, farmers grew food without using chemicals and fertilisers. These days, they add these things to be able to grow as much food as possible for as much profit as possible. To do this they often use chemicals that are neither good for people nor good for the soil. However, many people realise that badly-grown food can be bad for their health. Therefore they are now turning to organic farming, which does not involve putting chemicals in their fields.

HÀ NỘI  — Việt Nam and Timor Leste will intensify their cooperation across politics, economy, investment, trade, agriculture, forestry, fisheries, energy, and communications. This was reached during the talks in Hà Ná»™i yesterday between Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Phạm Bình Minh and Timor Leste’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Hermani Coelho da Silva, who is on an official visit to Việt Nam from April 6-8.

The worst drought ever recorded in Vietnam is stoking fears of a food security crisis. In a meeting with government officials next week, researchers with the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT)’s Asia regional office in Hanoi will unveil maps showing how water scarcity and climate change may imperil key crops—rice, cassava, maize, coffee, and cashew nuts—across the country. 

From April 4-8, members of the Western United States Agricultural Trade Association (WUSATA) visited Hanoi to discuss the potential of increasing agricultural exports to Vietnam. The group met with Vietnam’s agriculture and trade ministers to discuss the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and promote trade and cooperation between 13 western states of the US and Vietnam.

A delegation of agricultural traders from the US has said it is excited about the potential to boost agriculture exports to Vietnam during a recent trip here. While in Hanoi earlier this week, members of the Western United States Agricultural Trade Association (WUSATA) met with Vietnam’s agriculture and trade ministers to discuss the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and promote trade and cooperation between 13 western states of the US and Vietnam.

Rice production in Vietnam has increased significantly over the last few decades such that enough rice is produced there not only to supply Vietnam’s needs but also to support a major export industry. About half the rice in Vietnam is grown in the Mekong Delta, at the southern end of the country; The water-rich Mekong Delta with its tropical climate is well suited to rice production in flooded paddies. However, flooded rice paddies also result in substantial emissions of methane, a potent greenhouse gas. Rice grown in the Mekong Delta alone is responsible for about 8 to 9% of the Vietnam’s total GHG emissions, according to the Vietnam 2014 Biennial Report to the UNFCCC and this is a conservative estimate.

CDFA Secretary Karen Ross visited Vietnam last week as part of a delegation of the Western United States Agricultural Trade Association (WUSATA), a non-profit formed in 1980 by the 13 western state departments of agriculture as well as the territorial departments in Guam and Samoa. For more than three decades, WUSATA has offered programs and services to assist exporters of high-value food and agricultural products.

Two students have invented a house which protects people in areas near the Khanh Son dumping ground in Da Nang City from pollution. Quach Duc Huy, one of two students, said he began thinking of creating the house after watching the TV news about local residents in the polluted areas trying to prevent garbage-carrying trucks from entering the dumping ground. Huy and Tran My Duyen, another student, and their teacher visited the site to learn about the real situation there and discuss the solutions.

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A new study by Vietnam predicts adverse effects along the Mekong River if 11 proposed dams are built on its lower mainstream. Experts have long warned that the Mekong River, which flows from China into mainland Southeast Asia and provides food, water, and transportation to tens of millions of people, could be at risk as riparian nations build a string of dams to fuel their economic development.

HÀ NỘI Viet Nam News - — Việt Nam gained a year on year increase of 41 per cent from export value of vegetable and fruit to US$526 million in the first three months of this year. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), Vietnamese vegetable and fruit products have made forays into some tough markets that include Japan, South Korea and the United States (US). However, China remained the largest exporter of Vietnamese vegetable and fruit products, accounting for 71 per cent of the total vegetables and fruits, because this market does not need very high quality products as the other markets.

The Philippines can import another 500,000 tonnes of rice to boost state reserve stocks, a grains agency official said on Tuesday, as the government sought to mitigate the impact of an El Nino-linked drought on food supply. Fresh demand from the Philippines, one of the world’s biggest rice buyers, could underpin export prices in neighboring Vietnam and Thailand, traditionally Manila’s main suppliers. President Benigno Aquino has given the state grains procurement agency, National Food Authority (NFA), a “standby authority” to import up to half a million tonnes for this year’s requirements, NFA Administrator Renan Dalisay said.

LONDON: ICE sugar dipped on Tuesday but remained within sight of 17-month highs touched last week due to revised Asian crop forecasts, while coffee steadied with a focus on Vietnamese exports and the Brazilian real. Raw sugar futures remained well supported by downward revisions in crops in big producers such as India and Thailand due to dry weather, and dealers shrugged off a speculator-driven sell-off on Thursday after a sustained rally.

Research commissioned by Vietnam has warned of devastating environmental and economic effects for millions of people living along the Mekong River if 11 proposed dams are built. The two and a half year study by Danish water expert DHI was submitted recently by Vietnam to the Mekong River Commission, a body encompassing Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos that was set up to mediate the conflicting water priorities of Mekong countries. The commission released a five-page summary of the study yesterday.