NEW ZEALAND - According to Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh , Vietnamese and New Zealand businesses need to promote investment cooperation, including research, agricultural production, and food processing.
On the morning of March 10th, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh visited the New Zealand Plant Breeding and Food Research Centre (PFR) in Auckland.
According to the Center's leaders, many New Zealand experts have visited Vietnam dozens of times to support agricultural development and learn from their experience. Currently, the Center is assisting Vietnam in researching and improving post-harvest technology, breeding, and commercializing new dragon fruit varieties with new flavors and colors, targeting consumers in different markets.
"We have developed a device for detecting plant diseases and researched the breeding of several new fruit varieties such as kiwiberry," a representative from the Center said.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh held a kiwiberry in his hand and praised it, saying, "I've never eaten a fruit this delicious." Photo: Nhat Bac
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh praised the kiwiberry's delicious taste. "This is the first time in my life I've eaten one that tastes so good; after eating one, I want to eat another," he said.
Vietnamese government leaders expressed gratitude for New Zealand's support, despite the long distance, in cultivating avocados, passion fruit, and dragon fruit – key export fruits of Vietnam, grown extensively in disadvantaged regions.
According to the Prime Minister, the two countries are promoting the establishment of a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, including in the fields of agriculture, food production and processing. Research and production, and exports of agricultural products and food are pillars of economic cooperation between the two countries, and there is still vast potential in this area.
"New Zealand has a large land area and a sparse population, while Vietnam has a small land area and a dense population; therefore, the two countries can complement each other," he said.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and the Ministers of Agriculture and Rural Development, and Science and Technology at the New Zealand Plant Breeding and Food Research Centre (PFR) in Auckland. Photo: Nhat Bac
Currently, approximately 6,000 Vietnamese people are living, studying, and working in New Zealand. This number is expected to increase as economic, trade, and investment cooperation between the two countries develops strongly. Therefore, the Prime Minister hopes that the two countries will jointly research and accelerate the development of potential and breakthrough products in the agricultural sector.
The Plant and Food Research Centre (PFR) in New Zealand is responsible for research and development, promoting the crop, seafood, and food industries through the application and commercialization of research results. This facility possesses world-leading expertise, providing innovative solutions in high-tech agriculture.
Currently, PFR is implementing two projects in Vietnam funded by the New Zealand government. These are the VietFruit project – supporting the development of the passion fruit export industry, approved by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in November 2023. The project will develop capacity and expertise, as well as transfer high-quality passion fruit cultivation technology, to stakeholders in the value chain such as farmers, post-harvest operators, processors, and marketing departments. The total project capital is NZD 5.3 million (USD 3.3 million), implemented in Son La and Gia Lai provinces from 2023 to 2027.
PFR has also collaborated with SOFRI and SIAEP to develop the dragon fruit industry and improve the income of smallholder farmers. The project has researched solutions to resist white and brown spot diseases in dragon fruit plants. This result has reduced the use of fungicides by up to 33%, introduced a new cultivation system that doubles yields and improves fruit quality.
The project also implemented post-harvest improvements including forced air cooling and automated fruit washing. Thirty-one new dragon fruit varieties were bred and commercialized. These varieties offer novel flavors and colors to global consumers. They were also bred to improve quality and disease resistance.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (seated in the middle), Minister of Science and Technology Huynh Thanh Dat (second from the left), and Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Minh Hoan (second from the right) pose for a commemorative photo with the Center's leaders. Photo: Nhat Bac
Furthermore, in Binh Dinh, PFR has collaborated with the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to produce safe vegetables according to GAP standards and build a brand of safe vegetables for the market, helping to increase income by 30% for 2,000 participating farmers. In Dak Nong, PFR has partnered with Sam Agritech Trading Company to develop an export supply chain for avocados.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and his wife are on an official visit to New Zealand from March 10 to 11.
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