Environment and land
Vietnam ‘should sell rice to Africa’
Vietnam and the International Rice Research Institute hope to boost cooperation in developing genetic resources and choosing technology to improve rice quality, experts have said. The IRRI gene banks, wild-rice introgression population, structured genetic population and breeding lines represent a critical resource for generating the ...
Irrigation systems ‘must be improved’

Experts have urged Thailand to develop its irrigation system to ensure food security for the world’s growing population and a precautionary cover against the impact of climate change. More than 1,200 policy-makers, academics, and NGOs from 45 countries gathered in Chiang Mai on November 6 for ...
Phu Yen calls for emergency aid after floods

The flooded central province of Phu Yen Province has called for Government emergency aid of 1,000 tonnes of rice and over one tonne of medicine and medical supplies. The province sustained the most damage in the south-central region from recent rains and flooding, with an estimated ...
Rice standards run out of steam

The government is seeking funding to complete its effort to draft standards for 11 local varieties of rice as part of an initiative aimed at facilitating efforts to market Cambodia’s most important agricultural crop, a government official said on November 6. Chheng Uddara, a department ...
Attempts to curb electric fishing failing
Poachers are defying the law and risking imprisonment by continuing to use electric-shock methods to stun and catch fish, conservationists say. They say the practise is inflicting serious damage on the ecosystems of the Ayeyarwady River. The use of batteries to stun fish, as well ...
UXO caches uncovered in both Kandal, Pailin
Caches of unexploded ordnance were recovered in both Pailin and Kandal provinces on November 5 in what was a busy weekend for the Cambodian Mine Action Centre. Twelve DK-82 mortar rounds and two B-41 rocket-propelled grenades were unearthed by canal workers digging behind the Pailin ...
Miller execs resign amid price slump

Some 30 executive committee members of the Thai Rice Millers Association have stepped down amid criticism that rice millers are behind the recent slump in rice prices. The decision was declared by the the association’s president, Manas Kitprasert, during a news briefing Thursday. Mr Manas ...
President inspects Biluchaung Hydro-power Plant 2 in Kayah State

President U Htin Kyaw, together with Union Ministers U Than Myint, U Thein Swe and U Pe Zin Tun and Deputy Minister Maj-Gen Than Htut, visited Loikaw in Kayah State on November 3 and met with local officials, entrepreneurs, farmers and residents in Linphonlay Village. The ...
B127bn earmarked for rice scheme

The government’s scheme to delay releasing 10 million tonnes of new rice supply to the market, aimed at propping up sinking prices, will use a combined 127 billion baht in loans and subsidies, says the chief of the Bank of Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives. Of ...
Fierce competition for plastics sector

Plastic firms in Việt Nam face fierce competition and risk being acquired by foreign companies, experts said on November 2 at a conference in HCM City. Phạm Văn Bắc, deputy head of the construction ministry’s department of building materials, said the plastic industry had the potential ...