Vietnam able to ensure food security in all circumstances: Ministries, sectors and localities are zoning off areas to develop large-scale and high-quality rice production. (Photo: nongnghiep.vn)

By producing 43 million tonnes of unhusked rice, Vietnam is likely to supply 7.5 million tonnes of rice to the world this year, contributing to ensuring global food security, the official said.

Amid the food shortages in many countries in the world and rising rice prices, the agricultural sector has directed localities in the Mekong Delta region to expand their rice farms in the autumn-winter crop, and start the 2023-2024 winter-spring crop early to avoid salinity season in the region, he said.

The Deputy Minítẻ stressed the significance role of the rice sector in ensuring national food security as well as farmers’ livelihoods.

In Conclusion No. 81-KL/TW dated July 29, 2020, the Politburo underlined the need to maintain a stable area of 3.5 million hectares of rice for at least 35 million tonnes of rice each year.

Meanwhile, the Government also issued a resolution on ensuring food security until 2030 with similar targets, as well as an export volume of about 4 million tonnes each year.

According to Deputy Minister Tien, along with rice, Vietnam has also shown strong performance in foodstuff production with an annual output of 19 million tonnes of vegetables, 7.6 million tonnes of meat of all kinds, 18.5 billion eggs, 1.2 million tonnes of milk, and over 9 million tonnes of aquatic products. This is also an important factor that enables Vietnam to always ensure food security in all circumstances, he stressed.

He noted that in the first nine months of this year, Vietnam produced over 5.83 million tonnes of meat, up 6.14% year on year.

Minister of Agricultural and Rural Development Le Minh Hoan said that the agricultural sector is switching its focus from quantity to quality, and changing its mindset from agricultural production to agricultural economy to enhance its climate change response capacity and the ability of meeting market demands.

At the same time, the sector also aims to restructure its production, and the organisation of cooperatives and associations following value chain.

The Government has issued a National Action Plan to develop a transparent, responsible and sustainable food system by 2030 to fix the shortcomings and limitations of the agricultural sector, and at the same time create synergy for the growth of the sector and minimise the exchange of economic development for the environment and public health.