Binh Dinh (VNA) – A New Zealand funded project to produce safe vegetables is underway in an area of nearly 4,000 hectares covering four districts in the central province of Binh Dinh.
The project, spanning from 2016 to 2021, has a total cost of nearly 1.286 million USD, including 1.028 million USD from the New Zealand Government.
As scheduled, 7,400 farmers will receive safe vegetable production certificates in the fifth and sixth years of the project, when total output is estimated to reach 13,000 tonnes per year.
The number of certified farmers is expected to reach 39,000 in the 10th year of the project, while the total annual production will be raised to 69,000 tonnes in nearly 4,000 hectares of farm.
The major target of the project is to improve the economic stability for farmers and environmental sustainability, as well as to ensure food safety for consumers by focusing on managing vegetable diseases and controlling pesticide usage.
Alongside this, infrastructure for specific vegetable supply chains will be invested in, while farmers will be offered training courses on safe vegetable production and post-harvest practices, as well as responsible pesticide usage.
The project is the continuity of a long running New Zealand funded project for developing a sustainable rural livelihood in Binh Dinh, which has so far proved fruitful to the locality.-VNA