Cargill ramps up business and CSR activity in Vietnam

The American agriculture major has also sealed a US$10m agreement with Saigon International Terminals Vietnam (SITV) for grain and oilseeds warehousing in Phu My, and will build 25 schools across rural Vietnam by 2020. 

David MacLennan, chairman and chief executive, said Vietnam operations had been growing in importance for the company over the last two decades.

“Vietnam represents a very important market for us globally and presents clear growth opportunities​,” MacLennan said. 

“This year, we celebrate 20 years in the country during which we have leveraged our access to global markets and 150-year industry expertise to help contribute to the development of the agriculture sector here​.” 

The new animal feed mill will have a capacity of 260,000 tonnes per year and will become operational in the first half of 2017, bringing to 12 Cargill’s total number of animal nutrition production facilities in Vietnam. 

Meanwhile, the SITV agreement will provide 80,000 tonnes worth of warehousing facilities at the SITV port in Phu My for the distribution of grains and oilseeds to customers in Vietnam. 

The schools initiative is in addition to the 75 it has already opened in the country as part of a CSR initiative. More than 13,000 children have benefitted from the program so far, the company says.

More stories from Southeast Asia...

Indonesia places hybrid rice at centre of food security drive​

Indonesia has committed to the development of hybrid rice seeds as it seeks to achieve food self-sufficiency to feed its growing population.  ​

Speaking at a regional summit, Vice-President Jusuf Kalla said the government has given state-owned agribusiness company PT Sang Hyang Seri the task of developing hybrid rice seed production.

By focusing its attention on hybrid rice seeds, the government hopes to reduce its imports next year.

"We hope things will improve by next year so that we won’t have to import​," Kalla said after admitting that Indonesia was lagging in its ambitions to become self-sufficient in food.

It currently relies on rice imports from neighbouring countries to maintain the supply levels needed for economic stability.

Meanwhile, overseas purchases of raw sugar will rise 5 percent next year due to growing demand from the food and beverages sectors, according to the Indonesian Sugar Refineries Association.

Speaking to Reuters, the news agency, the association’s chairman said he expected imports to reach 3.25m tonnes next year, up from 3.1m tonnes in 2015.

Coffee sachets were a key demand driver for the world’s second biggest sugar importer, said Wisnu Priyatna. Growing overall sugar purchases could underpin global raw sugar prices which are currently at their highest level in 10 months due to worries that the world market is shifting into a deficit after several years of surplus.

Thailand sees warmwater prawn price rise​

Thailand warmwater prawn prices rose 4% month on month in October due to lower harvests in China and India, Mintec reports. ​

In China, a hot summer and heavy rainfall led to farmers harvesting early, thus increasing the supply of smaller prawns. This in turn will reduce the Chinese harvest later in the year and will encourage demand for Thai prawns from the EU and US, the commodities forecaster said. 

In addition, outbreaks of Enterocytozoon Hepatopenaei in India have reduced prawn production there.