Potential and challenges in sustainable agricultural production

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Minh Hoan speaks at the workshop.

The presentations at the workshop focused on introducing the potential of Azolla in sustainable agricultural development. Delegates from localities in the three regions of the North, Central and South shared experiences, good models, cultivation activities, and implementation plans related to Azolla. Referring to the practices of countries developing Azolla in agricultural production, Dr. La Nguyen, Institute of Soil and Agrochemistry, said: The agronomic potential of Azolla species is very high, especially when applied as a biological fertilizer to increase rice productivity and improve the water environment in rice-growing areas. In addition, in the world, Azolla is also used as animal feed, biological fertilizer, water purifier, biological herbicide, insecticide, disinfectant, anti-parasitic, anti-fungal, and anti-bacterial. Azolla extracts can also be used in the pharmaceutical industry due to the many beneficial and therapeutic properties of the components of Azolla such as antioxidant, anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic, hepatoprotective, antiviral, neuroprotective, cardioprotective, antihypertensive, and stress-reducing. These properties highlight the potential of Azolla as a versatile resource with applications ranging from agriculture to pharmaceuticals and environmental management.

Dr. La Nguyen, Institute of Soil and Agrochemistry, spoke

From the organic rice farming models to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the area, MSc. Pham Thi Thu, Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Bac Kan shared: Through the use of water fern in models in the province such as fertilizer for rice, food for black snails; organic rice farming (Tai sticky rice) combined with raising carp and water fern associated with community tourism... shows that the replication of water fern still faces many difficulties. Because there are no standards for building water fern models, currently it is mainly integrated into model training classes, so the application area is still small and scattered, detailed research is needed to evaluate the economic efficiency to replicate the models. MSc. Pham Thi Thu recommends that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development develop standards for water fern models, or issue a directive to encourage the implementation of water fern models. According to Ms. Thu, through experience implementing many models, for the water fern model, instead of supporting individuals, support should be provided in a community-oriented manner.

MSc. Pham Thi Thu, Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Bac Kan shared at the workshop

According to Mr. Nguyen Khac Hoang, Deputy Director of Van Hoi Xanh Cooperative (Tam Duong, Vinh Phuc ), in terms of social efficiency, water fern brings equal opportunities between all regions and all ethnic groups. Anyone can breed and apply water fern to help reduce poverty and get rich sustainably. In particular, when water fern is introduced into rice cultivation, it will create a low-emission product line in large quantities, opening up opportunities for carbon credit trading from production areas (500ha x 20 credits/ha = 10,000 credits).

With the desire to use water fern in sustainable agricultural production, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, Mr. Hoang proposed adding water fern as an organic fertilizer for crops so that localities can integrate it into state support programs, and at the same time, localities will place production orders based on their needs. According to Mr. Hoang, this is the fastest way to put water fern into production with the lowest cost and highest efficiency.

Mr. Nguyen Khac Hoang, Deputy Director of Van Hoi Xanh Cooperative (Tam Duong, Vinh Phuc) spoke

Speaking at the workshop, Minister Le Minh Hoan emphasized: “Today we discuss a small story like “water fern”. Water fern itself is not big, but the value it brings is not small. From such small stories, we will initiate new thinking to promote the value of the resources around us that we sometimes forget and move towards building responsible agriculture, conserving soil nutrients, resources, biodiversity, reducing emissions, and sustainable development. To do this, there needs to be a synergy between the state and society. From the experiences and achievements of practical models, state management agencies and scientists need to accelerate in-depth approaches to have a solid foundation to clearly state why we must invest in “reviving” water fern and build economic and technical standards.