An Giang’s journey to develop export-quality rice zones

From quantity to quality

As one of the provinces with the largest rice-growing areas in the Mekong Delta, An Giang has long been regarded as a key “rice granary” of Vietnam. However, as global rice markets increasingly demand higher standards in quality, traceability, and environmental compliance, An Giang’s agricultural sector has shifted strongly toward developing high-quality rice zones linked to value chains and export markets.

According to the Director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Environment, An Giang has more than 600,000 hectares of rice land. In 2025, total sowing area exceeded 1.3 million hectares across multiple cropping seasons, with total output reaching 8.8 million tons. This province’s agricultural sector is currently accelerating the restructuring of the rice industry and actively participating in the project titled “Sustainable development of one million hectares of high-quality, low-emission specialized rice cultivation associated with green growth in the Mekong Delta by 2030” (The one-million-ha rice project).

An Giang has taken a leading role among Mekong Delta provinces in implementing the one-million-ha rice project, exceeding 150,100 ha in 2025. Of this area, more than 43,000 hectares meet all five criteria (100%) of the low-emission rice production process issued by the Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection. The remaining area has achieved four out of the five criteria.

After more than two years of implementation, An Giang has carried out 89 pilot models, including 37 that fully apply all criteria under the one-million-hectare project’s production guidelines. The simultaneous adoption of technical measures such as reducing seed rates, applying water-saving irrigation, using high-quality rice varieties, and optimizing fertilizer use has helped cut production costs while maintaining stable yields.

Agricultural cooperatives and farmer groups have also been strengthened, becoming an important bridge between farmers and businesses. An Giang has now established hundreds of high-quality rice production zones, with tens of thousands of farmers participating in cooperatives, gradually reorganizing production in a more professional and modern direction.

Thanks to this transition, rice production in An Giang not only maintains output but also increases value, reduces greenhouse-gas emissions, and better adapts to climate change - one of the major challenges the Mekong Delta is facing.

Elevating Vietnamese rice in international markets

Alongside innovations in production methods, An Giang has focused on building value chains from production to consumption to enhance the value of rice. Many businesses and cooperatives have joined product underwriting agreements, forming large-scale fields and concentrated input areas for export.

In practice, high-quality rice production models not only reduce costs but also increase farmers’ profits. Evaluation results show that fields within these models reduce production costs by an average of VND 4.1 million per hectare, thanks to lower seed rates, reduced fertilizer use, and less irrigation water. At the same time, profits increase by an average of VND 9.3 million per hectare, while each hectare reduces emissions by about 7.5 tons of CO₂ equivalent.

Beyond economic benefits, adopting sustainable farming practices also helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions and meet green agricultural standards that are increasingly valued in international markets. This is considered a key factor in strengthening the competitiveness of Vietnamese rice in general and An Giang rice in particular.

The journey to develop high-quality rice zones in An Giang is opening a new direction for the rice sector, transitioning from traditional production to a green and sustainable agricultural model, helping Vietnamese rice reach further to global markets.

An Giang province has registered to implement the one-million-hectare project by 2030 with a planned area of 351,000 hectares, including a target of 183,000 hectares in 2026. The province plans to expand the area that meets 100% of the low-emission rice production criteria.

$ 1 = VND 26,107 - Source: Vietcombank.