Identifying breakthrough products for strategic agricultural technology

On May 28 in Hanoi, Deputy Minister Hoang Trung chaired a working session with the Department of Science and Technology and several ministry-affiliated units to discuss the implementation plan for strategic technology development tasks and strategic technology products.

Three priority technology task groups

Nguyen Van Long, Director of the Department of Science and Technology, said that under Decision No. 808/QD-TTg dated May 6, 2026, issued by the Prime Minister on assigning tasks for the development of science, technology, and innovation in connection with the country's major national priorities for the 2026–2030 period, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment has been designated to lead three priority task groups.

These comprise: developing new-generation crop varieties, livestock breeds, and aquatic species through gene technology, cellular technology, and biotechnology; mastering new-generation veterinary vaccine technology, biological products, and biologics for agricultural use; and building and operating an agricultural product traceability system.

The Department of Science and Technology reported that it has drafted an "Implementation Plan for Strategic Technology Development Tasks within the Scope of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment's Management" and has circulated the draft to relevant units for comment. Feedback received to date has focused primarily on clarifying the role of specialized departments as task-commissioning bodies, while also strengthening the contributions of research institutes, universities, and enterprises in the design and implementation process.

The implementation plan is structured around five steps outlined in the Ministry of Science and Technology's procedural handbook for strategic technology task deployment: task identification; appraisal and approval; task commissioning; budget and resource allocation; and organization, monitoring, inspection, and evaluation.

On the task identification step, a range of initial proposals have been compiled across each strategic technology group. In the crop, livestock, and aquaculture varieties sector, proposed priorities include the development of forestry tree varieties such as hybrid acacia; key crop varieties including passion fruit, jackfruit, pineapple, durian, coffee, dragon fruit, rice, cassava, and potato; and high-value livestock and aquaculture species such as pigs, shrimp, pangasius, tilapia, and selected marine fish species.

Under the veterinary vaccine and biological products task group, proposals focus on developing new-generation vaccines for livestock and poultry to prevent dangerous viral and bacterial diseases, as well as researching vaccines and biological preparations for aquaculture, particularly for pangasius, tilapia, marine fish, and brackish water shrimp, with the aim of reducing disease risk and improving productivity.

On the agricultural product traceability system task, the Ministry is proceeding with implementation in line with decisions already issued, while continuing to refine the system to ensure data integration, connectivity, and full transparency across the agricultural value chain.

The Department of Science and Technology has directed all relevant units to promptly finalize task documentation in accordance with the prescribed forms, technical justifications, and criteria, ensuring submissions are ready for appraisal no later than June 30, 2026. The Ministry will also work closely with the Ministry of Science and Technology throughout the appraisal, approval, and implementation process.

Defining strategic products to drive sector breakthroughs

Concluding the working session, Deputy Minister Hoang Trung emphasized that implementing strategic technology tasks carries not only scientific significance but also serves as a critical measure for driving the restructuring of the agricultural sector toward a modern, efficient, and sustainable model in the period ahead. Accordingly, he stressed the need to identify specific strategic products with precision.

For the sector-wide agricultural and forestry product traceability system task, the Deputy Minister directed the Department of Science and Technology to lead the unified rollout across the entire system.

For the two remaining task groups, the Deputy Minister assigned the Department of Science and Technology as the coordinating body to guide relevant units, while tasking the Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection and the Department of Forestry and Forest Protection with advancing work on crop varieties, livestock breeds, and agricultural products in strict accordance with the Ministry of Science and Technology's procedural handbook.

The Deputy Minister stressed that time is limited and called on all units to accelerate their work, ensuring reports are submitted within the coming week, with clear identification of strategic technology products, implementation timelines, and budget estimates to meet regulatory deadlines.

He also urged all units to maintain close attention to progress, select tasks with high practical feasibility grounded in real production needs, raise the sector's competitive capacity, and support the formation of sustainable agricultural value chains, while strengthening coordination among management agencies, research institutes, and enterprises to bring strategic technology products into real-world application as swiftly as possible.