Vietnam has witnessed a resurgence in its cassava exports sinceAugust 2014, but its cassava industry continues to face developmentchallenges, experts said.
The Ministry of Agriculture andRural Development (MARD) reported that cassava exports last August hadtripled the production of previous months to 193,000 tonnes.
Accordingto the MARD, however, in the first eight months of the year, cassavaexports experienced a year-on-year reduction of 2.6 percent in volume to2.26 million tonnes, and four percent in value to 729 million USD,because of a fall in cassava exports for the first seven months of theyear.
In the first eight months of the year, Chinacontinued to be the largest export market for Vietnamese cassava,accounting for 85 percent of total exports. Also, the export price ofcassava to China surged by 20 to 25 percent to 245 USD per tonne.
Meanwhile,cassava exports to Japan witnessed sudden and dramatic growth, risingby 12 times in volume and seven times in value. Exports to Malaysialikewise increased by 6.65 percent in volume but fell by 3.7 percent invalue compared with that of the same period last year.
TheMARD expected Vietnam to earn 1 billion USD from cassava exports for theentire year. However, Nguyen Van Lang, chairman of the Vietnam CassavaAssociation, said the cassava industry's development remainedunsustainable.
Vietnam's cassava starch production is inthe hands of 100 factories and hundreds of households, and the nation isthe world's second largest cassava exporter after Thailand, accordingto the association.
The country has allotted 560,000 ha ofland to cassava plants with a total output of 9.4 million tonnes, ofwhich 30 percent are for domestic consumption and 70 percent, or 6.5million tonnes, are for export.
But Lang said Vietnam couldexport only three million tonnes of cassava this year because theglobal economic crisis has reduced world demand for cassava. He addedthat China, the largest export market of Vietnamese cassava, has alsoclosed 70 percent of its ethanol-producing factories as China's ethanolindustry continued to stagnate.
Meanwhile, cassavaproduction is expected to increase in Thailand, the world's largestcassava exporter, and Indonesia plans to triple the volume of itscassava exports this year.
Chinese enterprises have alsobeen buying or investing in factories producing cassava starch in Laosand Cambodia to reduce its dependence on Vietnam.
Therefore,Lang said, the State should continue promotion programmes for exportingcassava to other markets to ensure stability in consumption and avoiddependence on China. Target markets include India, Malaysia, thePhilippines, Japan and South Korea, as well Taiwan and the EuropeanUnion.
The association has also asked the MARD and theMinistry of Science and Technology to do scientific research on newcassava seeds with high levels of productivity, as well as technologiesand equipment for increasing efficiency in the preservation andprocessing of cassava starch.
The State should also issuepolicies for offering soft loans to cassava-producing regions andregulating the environmental impact of cassava processing factories,added Lang.-VNA
The Ministry of Agriculture andRural Development (MARD) reported that cassava exports last August hadtripled the production of previous months to 193,000 tonnes.
Accordingto the MARD, however, in the first eight months of the year, cassavaexports experienced a year-on-year reduction of 2.6 percent in volume to2.26 million tonnes, and four percent in value to 729 million USD,because of a fall in cassava exports for the first seven months of theyear.
In the first eight months of the year, Chinacontinued to be the largest export market for Vietnamese cassava,accounting for 85 percent of total exports. Also, the export price ofcassava to China surged by 20 to 25 percent to 245 USD per tonne.
Meanwhile,cassava exports to Japan witnessed sudden and dramatic growth, risingby 12 times in volume and seven times in value. Exports to Malaysialikewise increased by 6.65 percent in volume but fell by 3.7 percent invalue compared with that of the same period last year.
TheMARD expected Vietnam to earn 1 billion USD from cassava exports for theentire year. However, Nguyen Van Lang, chairman of the Vietnam CassavaAssociation, said the cassava industry's development remainedunsustainable.
Vietnam's cassava starch production is inthe hands of 100 factories and hundreds of households, and the nation isthe world's second largest cassava exporter after Thailand, accordingto the association.
The country has allotted 560,000 ha ofland to cassava plants with a total output of 9.4 million tonnes, ofwhich 30 percent are for domestic consumption and 70 percent, or 6.5million tonnes, are for export.
But Lang said Vietnam couldexport only three million tonnes of cassava this year because theglobal economic crisis has reduced world demand for cassava. He addedthat China, the largest export market of Vietnamese cassava, has alsoclosed 70 percent of its ethanol-producing factories as China's ethanolindustry continued to stagnate.
Meanwhile, cassavaproduction is expected to increase in Thailand, the world's largestcassava exporter, and Indonesia plans to triple the volume of itscassava exports this year.
Chinese enterprises have alsobeen buying or investing in factories producing cassava starch in Laosand Cambodia to reduce its dependence on Vietnam.
Therefore,Lang said, the State should continue promotion programmes for exportingcassava to other markets to ensure stability in consumption and avoiddependence on China. Target markets include India, Malaysia, thePhilippines, Japan and South Korea, as well Taiwan and the EuropeanUnion.
The association has also asked the MARD and theMinistry of Science and Technology to do scientific research on newcassava seeds with high levels of productivity, as well as technologiesand equipment for increasing efficiency in the preservation andprocessing of cassava starch.
The State should also issuepolicies for offering soft loans to cassava-producing regions andregulating the environmental impact of cassava processing factories,added Lang.-VNA
