High-quality rice varieties like OM 4900 and OM 6976 were grown in a combined 520,379 hectares this year, 469 hectares of which followed VietGAP standards. Total rice production is valued at VND 15.37 trillion (USD 661.3 million), an increase of VND 562 billion (USD 24.1 million) against 2017.

Director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Van Cong attributed the good yield to advanced technology application in rice cultivation which helps reduce input costs and improve production efficiency.

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Rice production in the Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap in 2018 rose by 120,000 tons.

Under the province’s agricultural restructuring project, organic rice farming is piloted in an area of 800 hectares while rice value chain has been set up to help increase local peasants’ profit by up to VND 4 million (USD 172) per hectare per crop.

Particularly, some 90 companies signed contracts with the province to buy more than 293,000 tons of rice.

Cong said that in 2019, the province will continue paying attention to improving rice quality and enhancing the use of machines in rice farming. Also, it will work to switch from agricultural production to agricultural economy.

Source: VNA