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Coffee exports from Vietnam, the biggest producer of robusta beans, may fall to the lowest in six years as farmers hold out for higher prices amid a forecast global supply shortage, according to the nation’s largest shipper. Shipments are forecast at 1.1 million to 1.2 million metric tons this year, Do Ha Nam, the chief executive officer of Intimex Group, said in an interview last week. That would be the lowest level since 2010, according to customs data.

Sea level rise and saltwater intrusion can be a chance to exploit the advantages for residents in coastal areas. Compared to the data series over the past 90 years (1926 - 2015), the highest water level in flood season in 2015 is 2.42m at upstream Tan Chau (An Giang Province), which is just equivalent to 57% of average flood water level of many years. Another signal of drought is that rainy season began 3-5 weeks later than many-year average but ended 2-4 weeks earlier.

According to Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), regarding to the implementation of final inspection rule on pangasius as required by Agricultural Act of 2014, USDA is committed not to interrupt the pangasius export from Vietnam to USA. In mid-February, MARD has established inter-ministerial delegation led by Deputy Head of MARD - Mr.Vu Van Tam to the United State and worked with USDA, United States Trade Representative (USTR), senior consultants of Members of Parliament from the Senate and House of Commons, and other related organizations and individuals in US. At the same time, MARD formed a technical groups to discuss in detail and clarify the differences in interpretation, application and Vietnam preparation to meet new requirements of final rule.

According to Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), estimated volume of imported fertilizer of all kinds in February is 184 thousand tons with $64 million in value, accumulated to the volume of imported fertilizer in the first 2 months at 561 thousand tons with $167 million in value, increase by 10.6 % in volume but reduced by 3.1% in value compared to the same period of 2015.

Rice is referred to as Vietnam’s “white gold” because it is not only a valuable staple crop but also one of the country’s major export products. In 2015, Vietnam exported 6.61 million tons of rice, making it the world’s third-largest rice exporter after only India and Thailand. But, the country’s rice industry has been beset with challenges because of climate change, particularly in its regional granaries—the Red River Delta and the Mekong River Delta. These major rice-growing areas are increasingly becoming vulnerable to salt water intrusion and flooding caused by sea-level rise.

WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S. — Cargill announced on March 1 that it was awarded a 2015 U.S. Secretary of State’s Award for Corporate Excellence (ACE) which recognizes American companies that make an important contribution to the growth and sustainable development of the local economies in which they work. The company was one of three finalists in the human rights and labor rights category.

Countries in South East Asia want to invest in adding value to their own agricultural products. Vietnam and Thailand want to use Dutch agro knowledge for this. Controllable mobile cold storage places are used from the Netherlands. Increasingly often, those new techniques are based on the internet, such as track and tracing of agricultural products. On March 18th the agricultural councils active in 74 countries will meet to support Dutch entrepreneurs in the agro food sector in the NBC in Nieuwegein.

ISRAEL - Remote Sensing allows farmers to monitor soil data without the need for deploying sensors in the fields. Remote Sensing defined as the practice and technologies that enable collecting, analyzing and monitoring land data without any physical devices on the ground. It is a well-known practice in many different scientific domains such as weather, ecological studies, natural resource management, geology, forestry and more. It is also becoming more popular and accessible for agricultural purposes.

HA NOI (VNS) — Viet Nam and international partners have pledged to co-ordinate in combating health risks posed by diseases that are transmitted from animals to humans. The commitment was made yesterday at the inaugural meeting and signing ceremony of the One Health Partnership for Zoonoses (OHP). OHP was built upon the achievements of the Viet Nam Partnership on Avian and Human Influenza that was originally established in 2006.

Although domestic dairy products supply only a small proportion of demand in Vietnam, cow farmers in the southern region still cannot sell their milk to dairy companies and face severe hardship unless something is done to reduce the price of domestic milk. About 800 households raising cows in Cu Chi District, Ho Chi Minh City are unable to sell their milk to dairy firms as no trading contracts have been signed between them. This happens despite a recent statement by Dinh La Thang, Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee, encouraging dairy farmers to do so.

HANOI, Feb. 29 (Xinhua) -- Vietnamese Prime Minister (PM) Nguyen Tan Dung on Monday suggested cabinet members to take efforts so as to lift the country's economic growth target from 6.7 percent to around 7 percent in 2016. Chairing the regular cabinet meeting in Vietnam's capital Hanoi on Monday, the PM said "the country has made progresses in all fields". According to the General Statistics Office, in the first two months of 2016, Vietnam is estimated to post a trade surplus of 865 million U.S. dollars.

HA NOI (VNS)— Spain will initiate special measures to control black pepper imports to this country after a warning about high residue of carbendazim fungicide found in some batches of Vietnamese pepper. The warning was issued by the European Commission (EC), according to the Viet Nam's Trade Office in Spain. The office said the EC issued the warning after authorities in Malta detected high carbendazim residue in Phuc Sinh Joint Stock Company's batches of black pepper imported to the country.

Pepper shipments from Vietnam, the world’s biggest producer, will likely rise 13 percent this year, pushing down export prices, according to the chairman of the nation’s industry group. Exports will climb to 150,000 metric tons from about 133,000 tons in 2015, Do Ha Nam, the chairman of the Vietnam Pepper Association, said in an interview. While production will also rise - by 10 percent to about 140,000 tons - he said output from the likes of India, Indonesia and Malaysia will probably decline because of the impact of El Nino, limiting the effect on global supply.

HCM CITY (VNS) — Both local and foreign experts have urged Vietnamese flower growers to cultivate new kinds of flowers and use high-tech planting techniques to develop the industry. Pham Van Hai, CEO of Viet Nam Trade International, said: "The city of Sa Dec in Dong Thap Province, which is one of the country's flower cities, has developed slowly compared to its potential as many farmers have not used advanced technology in cultivation."

HCM CITY (VNS) — After three years of implementation of the Mangroves and Markets Project (MAM), shrimp farmers have become more aware of organic production techniques and the need to preserve mangrove forests in their areas. "Local farmers in the southernmost province of Ca Mau have been able to significantly increase their income. They now have higher productivity and prices for their organic shrimp, and get paid for environmental services," Nguyen Thi Bich Thuy, project manager, said at a project review meeting of the first phase held in HCM City last week.

HA NOI (VNS) — The national agriculture sector is working to restructure the cultivation schedule to save water, grow saltwater-resistant crops and trees, and efficiently use irrigation water in order to help millions of farmers in the Mekong Delta confront the worst drought and saltwater intrusion in 90 years.