Beef industry urged to undergo transformation

If the beef industry does not undergo a remarkable transformation, it will not be sufficiently competitive with imported beef in the future to survive, President of the Vietnam Husbandry Association Nguyen Dang Vang told radio The Voice of Vietnam (VOV).
If the beef industry does not undergo a remarkable transformation, itwill not be sufficiently competitive with imported beef in the future tosurvive, President of the Vietnam Husbandry Association Nguyen DangVang told radio The Voice of Vietnam (VOV).

Vang said Vietnamhas become the second largest consumer of Australian beef with 84,000head of cattle imported since the beginning of this year, and the figureis forecast to reach 150,000 by the year-end.

The influx ofAustralian beef is attributed to local consumers’ increasing demand.Although imported beef is currently subject to a tax of 5 percent, itoverwhelms local beef thanks to lower breeding costs and large-scale andmodern breeding procedures overseas, added Tong Xuan Chinh, Deputy Headof the Animal Husbandry Department.

According to VOV, manyexperts worry that subsequent to Vietnam signing the Trans-PacificPartnership (TPP) agreement, the import tax on beef will be graduallyslashed to zero percent by 2018, which would reduce the cost of importedbeef even further, effectively killing the beef industry in Vietnam.

Vangemphasised that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development(MARD)’s project to restructure the husbandry sector aims to speed upthe breeding of cows to increase the added value in agriculture.However, if the beef industry does not make remarkable changes in termsof breeding procedures, scale, and prices, local beef cannot competewith imported products.

Nguyen Do Anh Tuan, Director of MARD'sCentre for Agriculture Policy Consultancy, said Vietnam’s beef industrystill has plenty of time to make changes and sharpen its competitiveedge.

One advantage Vietnamese beef has is that local consumersstill prefer to purchase beef at traditional markets. This is a natural“shield” that serves to protect the domestic beef industry, Tuan said.

DangKim Son, Director General of the Institute of Policy and Strategy forAgricultural and Rural Development, in turn said the biggest hindrancesto the cow breeding industry are small-scale breeding, outdatedproduction procedures, low productivity, and lack of planning and littleco-ordination in consuming products.

To get out of the woods,the industry should set up commercial cow breeding models betweenfarmers and businesses. Getting involved in the supply chain, farmersshould receive support from businesses to obtain bank loans forproduction. In fact, several models have proved successful in Dong Naiand Hanoi.

Apart from cooperation between businesses and banks,there should be support from the State and slaughtering establishmentsto establish a comprehensive production and consumption procedures,contributing to boosting the cow breeding industry and overhauling thehusbandry sector.-VNA

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