Sugarcane, a highlight in Vietnam-Yunnan agricultural cooperation

Deputy Minister Hoang Trung emphasized that the visit of the delegation led by Mr. Wang Xianjiang is significant, especially as the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment and Yunnan province are striving to strengthen cooperation in the fields of agriculture and environmental protection.

In recent years, visits and working sessions between leaders of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (now the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment) and Yunnan province have taken place regularly and are becoming increasingly substantive. In 2024, the trade turnover between Yunnan and Vietnam reached USD 3.11 billion, an increase of 17.7% compared to the same period in 2023. Yunnan’s exports to Vietnam totaled USD 1.86 billion (up 28.6%), while imports from Vietnam reached USD 1.25 billion (up 11.4%).

To date, both sides have essentially completed the content and procedures for signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on cooperation in agriculture and rural development. However, in March 2025, Vietnam merged the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. As a result, the two sides are currently reviewing the possibility of expanding cooperation to include environmental resources to align with the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment's current scope of monitoring and management.

Building on that foundation, Deputy Minister Trung proposed strengthening cooperation in the development of several key crops, such as rice, sugarcane, mango, potato, soybean, and mulberry for silk production, as well as high-yield, high-quality indigenous waterfowl and poultry breeds suitable for the ecological conditions of northern mountainous regions. In addition, sectors such as fisheries, forestry, agricultural market development and trade promotion, water resources, environment, and climate change response were also identified as having great potential for collaboration.

"Vietnam and Yunnan still have ample room for cooperation. I hope these areas will soon be included in the MoU so that both sides can sign and use it as a basis to promote long-term, concrete cooperation," he stated.

Mr. Wang Xianjiang, Deputy Secretary of the People’s Government of Yunnan province, emphasized the increasingly close friendship between the two countries, in which agriculture has always been a top priority for cooperation.

The Deputy Secretary expressed strong admiration for Vietnamese agricultural products, particularly seafood and coffee - two items highly favored by Yunnan consumers. According to him, Vietnam’s coffee production is ten times greater than that of Yunnan, while China’s coffee market is growing rapidly, with an average annual growth rate of 20%, opening up vast opportunities for cooperation.

“One of the highlights in agricultural cooperation is sugarcane. We are very interested in this area and have already established several foundations for collaboration. Notably, research institutes from both sides have recently signed an MoU on sugarcane research cooperation. I believe that in the future, Yunnan could import up to 1 million tons of sugarcane from Vietnam,” Mr. Wang stated.

He also emphasized that Yunnan, with its exceptional diversity in culture, climate, and ecosystems, offers great potential for further cooperation in areas such as tourism and cultural exchange between the two sides.

After listening to the remarks from the Deputy Secretary of Yunnan province, Deputy Minister Hoang Trung expressed his agreement and highly valued the cooperation opportunities between the two sides. “Vietnam is ready to work with Yunnan to elevate the sugarcane sector to a new level - not only in terms of scale, but also in production, processing, and trade,” he stated.

“I am committed to creating the most favorable conditions for the effective implementation of the contents outlined in the Memorandum of Understanding on sugarcane research cooperation. At the same time, both sides should closely coordinate so that Vietnam can export sugarcane in large volumes, fully meeting your requirements,” the Deputy Minister emphasized.

During this visit, the Yunnan delegation held working sessions with various departments under Vietnam’s Ministry of Agriculture and Environment and visited the coffee production plant of Minh Tien Company.

Notably, on the morning of July 24 in Hanoi, under the witness of leaders from Yunnan Province and the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, the Sugarcane Research Institute under the Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences signed a MoU with the Sugarcane Research Institute under the Vietnam Academy of Agricultural Sciences. This agreement lays the foundation for promoting joint research and expanding the import of Vietnamese sugarcane into the Yunnan market.