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Mr. Pham Van Muoi, Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Environment, answered the interview of reporters of Ca Mau Newspaper, Radio and Television.

Reporter: Sir! Agriculture is considered the key economic sector of Ca Mau. Could you tell us how important the sector has been in the local socio-economic development in recent times?

Mr. Pham Van Muoi: Ca Mau's agricultural sector has a fast and stable growth rate. In the period 2020-2025, the whole sector achieved an average growth rate of 4.9%/year.

Aquaculture continues to hold a leading position. By the end of 2025, the aquaculture area will reach more than 425 thousand hectares. Of which, shrimp farming will reach nearly 418 thousand hectares, accounting for over 55% of the country's shrimp farming area; shrimp output will reach 565 thousand tons, accounting for nearly 45% of the country's shrimp output, with an export turnover of about 2.27 billion USD, contributing more than half of Vietnam's shrimp export value. Intensive and super-intensive shrimp farming models applying high technology will account for more than 10 thousand hectares, with a yield of 20-23 tons/ha, products meeting international standards ASC, BAP, VietGAP, GlobalGAP, Organic, with a value increase of 10-15%.

Conference on signing cooperation agreement to deploy and replicate the super-intensive whiteleg shrimp farming model using RAS-IMTA technology.

The cultivation sector has made remarkable progress. The rice cultivation area is nearly 315 thousand hectares, the output is 1.864 million tons/year, the average yield is 4.59 tons/ha. Ca Mau has formed rice-shrimp , high-quality and organic rice areas for export. Mechanization has reached 100% in land preparation, 95% in spraying, 80% in harvesting; the application of drones, sensors, and low-emission rice models has helped increase productivity and profits.

The livestock industry has shifted strongly towards biosecurity, developing concentrated farms, linked with disease control and food safety. The total number of pigs sold is about 240 thousand, and poultry is 6.3 million.

Reporter: In the coming time, what breakthroughs will the province have for the sustainable development of the shrimp industry, sir?

Mr. Pham Van Muoi : The aquaculture industry, especially the shrimp industry, is identified as a key economic sector of the province. In the coming time, the development orientation will focus on increasing added value, product quality, applying high technology and sustainable development, friendly to the environment.

Regarding farming areas and technology, the province will develop a super-intensive shrimp farming model applying high technologies such as: Biofloc, IoT, automated feeding, real-time water environment monitoring system and RAS recirculation technology to reduce pollution and increase productivity. Continue to develop shrimp-rice, shrimp-forest, ecological shrimp and organic shrimp farming models associated with international certifications such as: ASC, BAP, VietGAP, GlobalGAP, Organic.

Shrimp - rice model in Hong Dan commune, Ca Mau province

Regarding value chain, brand and market, the province aims to form a closed value chain from seed production, farming, deep processing to consumption and export. Strive for 30% of super-intensive farming area to participate in the chain . Develop shrimp industry clusters, shrimp industrial centers, increase the proportion of deep processing and diversify value-added products.

At the same time, the province is promoting the development and promotion of the "Ca Mau Ecological Shrimp" brand, expanding the green export market, and accessing the Halal market . Consolidating its position in traditional markets such as the EU, Japan, Korea, Canada, and Australia. The application of Blockchain technology in traceability, digital transformation, and Big Data will help improve the transparency, quality, and competitiveness of Ca Mau shrimp products.

Reporter: Currently, not only the shrimp industry but also the rice industry is receiving attention from the province to produce special rice varieties in the direction of organic, ecological and low emission. What orientations does the Department of Agriculture and Environment have to help the rice industry make a breakthrough in the coming time?

Mr. Pham Van Muoi: First of all, the agricultural sector of Ca Mau has determined that the focus is to shift from agricultural production thinking to agricultural economic thinking, taking value, quality and sustainability as measures instead of output. Production restructuring continues to be promoted in conjunction with land use planning, suitable for each ecological sub-region, forming concentrated production areas in the direction of organic, ecological and low emissions .

Low emission rice model in Khanh Binh commune, Ca Mau province.

Regarding the application of science and technology, the province focuses on promoting the transfer of technical advances, synchronous mechanization and accelerating digital transformation in agricultural production. The models of "3 reductions, 3 increases", "1 must, 5 reductions", "IPHM", VietGAP, organic and ecological continue to be replicated. Along with that, biotechnology is applied to crossbreed high-yield, salt-tolerant and disease-resistant crops and livestock. Enterprises and cooperatives are encouraged to apply digital technology, IoT and artificial intelligence (AI) in monitoring, managing production areas and forecasting epidemics, towards forming a synchronized digital agricultural data system for the whole province. The province is implementing strict management of seed sources and agricultural materials; expanding mechanization of harvesting and processing to reduce post-harvest losses.

Mechanical rice harvesting in Hoa Binh commune, Ca Mau province

In particular, Ca Mau strives to build the brand "Low emission green Vietnamese rice", manage growing area codes , agricultural product packaging facilities to serve traceability and export of products to develop green, smart, ecological and sustainable agriculture.

Thank you!

Thuy Lien - Duy Phong

Source: https://baocamau.vn/huong-den-nen-nong-nghiep-hien-dai-ben-vung-a123689.html