HCMC – The Ministry of Finance has fixed the average production cost for a kilo of rice in the Mekong Delta in this year’s summer-fall crop at VND3,993, meaning traders must purchase the food staple at above VND5,190 to secure 30% profit for farmers.
Ministry wants rice price raised to back farmers
By Pham Thai - The Saigon Times Daily
HCMC – The Ministry of Finance has fixed the average production cost for a kilo of rice in the Mekong Delta in this year’s summer-fall crop at VND3,993, meaning traders must purchase the food staple at above VND5,190 to secure 30% profit for farmers.
The ministry announced the production cost of rice in the 2012 summer-fall crop ranged from VND3,524 to VND4,540 per kilo, which was up VND636 from the winter-spring season. Given unfavorable climate conditions, the loss rate and production cost edged up.
In particular, Tien Giang Province produced rice at the highest price of VND4,540.
Exporters must boost rice exports in July and August, when the region starts a huge harvest. They must pay attention to delivery time when cutting deals with buyers, said Nguyen Tri Ngoc, an official of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
However, as of now, the outlook for rice exports still remains pessimistic as the export price is projected to inch down further against earlier this year. The export price of rice averaged out at US$464 a ton in January-May, down 5.7% year-on-year.
Most provinces in the delta, the country’s key rice growing area, have begun their rice harvest. The price of Jasmine rice in An Giang on Thursday ranged from VND6,700 to VND6,900 a kilo while that of low-grade paddy IR 50404 and OM2514 was VND5,100- VND5,200 and VND5,500- VND5,600 respectively.