Illustrative photo (Source: VNA)Hanoi (VNA) – The rice export value of Laos in the first six monthsof 2017 dropped 42 percent compared to the same period last year, according tothe country’s Ministry of Industry and Commerce.
Laos earned 11.2 million USD from rice exports from January to June,lower than the figure of 19.4 million USD in the same period last year. Itsmain importers were Vietnam, Thailand and China, reported China’s Xinhua NewsAgency.
According to the Lao Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Laos exportsabout 300,000 tonnes of rice annually. The ministry expects to export 400,000tonnes this year and hopes the figure will climb to 1 million tonnes by 2020.
The focus will be kaynoi (Lao specialty rice) and fragrant rice while new improvedvarieties such as thadokkham, tasano, phonngam and hom are also in demand.
The Laos government also aims to produce 5 million tonnes of paddy riceby 2020 to ensure food security in the country.
However, rice farmers in Laos need to improve production at various stages toachieve standards required for export, including the field environment,technical systems, machines, and certification.
Rice producers in the Southeast Asian countryhave tried to improve the quality of their products and techniques using newtechnology, but are still struggling to secure markets. Some farmers have switched to growing othercrops worth more than rice.
Rice is a main crop for Lao domestic marketsupply as well as export, besides coffee, corn, sugarcane, cassava and beans.The country shipped abroad about 21,000 tonnes of rice and 52,000 tonnes ofpaddy rice last year while about 248,000 tonnes of paddy rice was sold inborder trading.-VNA
