Agricultural Commodities

MANKATO, Minn. — Did you know that Minnesota soybeans regularly make their way halfway around the world to Vietnam? Soybeans are the top crop exported from Minnesota. Many go to Vietnam thanks to the efforts of the Minnesota Soybean Research and Promotion Council and the U.S. Soybean Export Council. As Vietnam's economy has become more industrialized, citizens are looking for better calorie sources, including animal protein. Knowing that those animals need to eat, MSR&PC made a strategic investment in Vietnam, funding three staff members and an officer there to encourage the import of Minnesota soybeans.

DakLak — Many cows and buffaloes in the central highlands province of DakLak have died from eating indigestible food after a serious shortage of drinking water and food caused by a heat wave, local agricultural authorities said.

[JAKARTA] Pests and disease outbreaks are threatening to decrease cassava production by 30-40 per cent this year in South-East Asia, home of the world’s largest cassava producers.  The pestilence will endanger the livelihood of 40 million people in the region, according to a recent study published in Pest Management Science. “Cassava witches’ broom disease has spread substantially and is currently found at high infestation levels in western Thailand, central Vietnam, Cambodia and the Philippines.”

Vietnam's agricultural products are at risk of being surrounded by high-quality agricultural products from North American countries and New Zealand after the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) takes effect. If the opening of the agricultural market for Brunei, Singapore, Malaysia, Chile and Peru does not pose serious problems for Vietnam’s agriculture, it does for Canada and the United States because they are the countries with high-quality agricultural products and a complete value chain. These countries are rushing to develop strategies to bring agricultural products to TPP members. In the recent survey of the market of food and agricultural products in Vietnam, a Canadian agricultural enterprise said they were preparing to penetrate the Vietnamese market with high-quality products. The tariff is not too important now but rather the product strategy and the understanding of customers. This is a prerequisite to enter and compete in the Vietnamese market.

Coffee growers in Vietnam, the biggest producer of robusta beans, sold beans at the fastest pace in two years to help pay for irrigation amid the worst drought in 30 years.
Growers sold 930,000 metric tons, or 58 percent of the current crop, at the end of March, according to a Bloomberg News survey of seven traders. That’s the fastest pace for the time of year since 62 percent in 2014 and compares with 49 percent a year earlier. This season’s output probably totaled 1.6 million tons, same as last year’s, according to the survey.

Trading in Vietnamese coffee rose this week as buyers stocked up amid worries a drought would crimp supply, although farmers held on to their supplies in hopes local prices will climb further from current four-month highs, traders said. Farmers in Vietnam's Central Highlands coffee belt have been hit by the worst drought in three decades brought on by the El Nino weather pattern, and more damage to the 2016/17 crop is expected due to water shortages, industry body Vietnam Coffee and Cocoa Association (Vicofa) has said.

The Vietnam Food Association (VFA) has forecast that China would account for around half Vietnam’s rice export volume this year as the northern neighbor did last year. Huynh The Nang, chairman of VFA and general director of Vietnam Southern Food Corporation (Vinafood 2), said at a conference in Tien Giang Province last week that Vietnamese enterprises shipped more than four out of 8.3 million tons of rice for export last year to China via formal and informal channels. The volume of rice going to China in 2016 would be the same as last year, Nang told the conference on the 2015-2016 winter-spring rice crop and plans for the upcoming summer-autumn and autumn-winter crops this year.

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.

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.

A southern province bordering Ho Chi Minh City is holding a festival to promote one of its delicacies as part of the national cultural heritage today, April 6. The first-ever Dew-Wetted Rice Paper Festival, or banh trang phoi suong in Vietnamese, is being held in Trang Bang District, Tay Ninh Province, known as the birthplace of the renowned specialty. Banh trang phoi suong is made by leaving rice papers outside overnight for them to be moistened by dew, which adds a unique flavor to the food. The dew-wetted rice paper is usually served with boiled pork, vegetables, and fish sauce.

Latest round of high-profile destruction comes as tension rises in the disputed South China Sea. Indonesia destroyed 23 foreign fishing boats on Tuesday, as worsening relations over the disputed South China Sea drive countries to take tougher action to defend their maritime sovereignty. Maritime and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti said her agency sank 10 Malaysian and 13 Vietnamese boats that were caught fishing illegally in Indonesian waters.

LONDON/HANOI - Vietnamese robusta coffee premiums look set to rise further due to a worsening drought in the world's top grower, boosting incentives to draw down ageing exchange certified stocks, traders said on Friday. The country's Central Highlands main coffee belt is facing the worst drought in 30 years, heaping pressure on its limited supply. Premiums of robusta grade 2, 5 percent black and broken, rose to $50-60 a tonne to ICE July futures this week, from premiums of $40-50 a tonne last week, due to tight supply, traders said.