Vietnam Food Security Brief - GIEWS 14-December-2011

Reference Date: 14-December-2011

2011 paddy rice production estimated to reach record level at 42 million tonnes

The 2011 harvest of the 10^th Month paddy rice is currently underway and planting of the winter/spring season paddy began in mid-November and will continue until early- April. Rainfall has been generally satisfactory in most regions, except for the south-western part of the country. Heavy rains since July reaching intense downpours in October caused severe flooding in the central region of the country. Some 330 000 people were affected and a total of 28 813 hectares of standing paddy crop damaged. In spite of this localized flood damage to the summer/autumn paddy crop, the annual aggregate production in 2011 is estimated by the Ministry of Agriculture to reach a record level at 42 million tonnes (equivalent to 28 million tonnes of milled rice), or 5 percent higher than the previous year’s bumper harvest. The increase is characterized by favourable winter-spring harvest and rise in the average yield of the summer/autumn paddy in the Mekong Delta, primarily in response to the attractive international rice prices. Output of winter/spring season generally amounts to about 50 percent of the annual paddy production. The remaining two harvests (summer/autumn in September/October and the 10^th Month in December), make up the other half. There has been a steady increase in rice production in Viet Nam over the past several years.

Production of maize in 2011 reached 4.8 million tonnes, 3 percent over the previous year’s above-average output.

High level of rice exports expected to continue in 2012

Viet Nam is the world’s second-largest rice exporter following Thailand. With the expectation of a good production in 2011, the 2012 rice exports at 7.3 million tonnes are forecast to rise slightly above this year’s record level. Cereal imports consist mostly of wheat and maize. During the 2010/11 marketing year (July/June) both commodity imports reached record levels at 2.5 and 1.5 million tonnes, respectively.

Domestic price of rice reached record level in November 2011

Domestic prices for rice, the main staple food in the country, have been rising since July 2010 and reached record levels in November 2011. The retail price of rice in Dong Thap market is 23 percent above its level a year ago and 86 percent up from its high in July 2010. Despite new harvest of the 2011 summer/autumn rice and the ongoing harvesting of the minor 10^th Month crop, higher domestic prices are supported by strong export demand. Export prices of Vietnam rice (Ho Chi Minh 25% broken), also rose from the beginning of July following the general trend in the international market but the increase is less marked than for domestic prices. The general inflation eased slightly for the third month in November, but Viet Nam still struggles with the fast rising prices; the consumer price inflation in August 2011, a year-on-year increase, is estimated at 20 percent. The declining purchasing power of the poor is expected to affect food security of the most vulnerable people.

Source: GIEWS Country Briefs - Vietnam
Reference Date: 14-December-2011