Vietnam and Australia promote cooperation in rice development

On October 29, at the headquarters of the Vietnamese Embassy in Canberra, Vietnamese Ambassador to Australia Pham Hung Tam had a meeting and worked with Mr. Anthony McFarlane, Communications Director of SunRice Group - the largest rice production and distribution group in Australia.

Ambassador Pham Hung Tam (center) and Mr. Anthony McFarlane (right), Communications Director of Sunrice Group and Lao Ambassador to Australia, Mr. Chatoulong Bouasisavath. Photo: VNA

The reception was also attended by Lao Ambassador to Australia, Mr. Chatoulong Bouasisavath.

According to VNA correspondent in Australia, at the meeting, Mr. Anthony McFarlane informed Ambassador Pham Hung Tam about the operation situation and cooperation projects of SunRice Group in Vietnam. In recent years, SunRice Group has actively cooperated with the Australian Center for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) to conduct research and develop many new high-yield rice varieties in Vietnam. These products not only meet the domestic market but are also exported to international markets such as Australia, New Zealand and the Middle East.

SunRice Group also focuses on raising awareness among farmers about the rice production value chain and reducing pesticide residues. Accordingly, the group's latest project in collaboration with ACIAR is called "Sustainable rice production value chain for smallholder farmers in the Mekong Delta". The SunRice ACIAR project aims to establish a high-yield, sustainable, traceable and quality-assured tropical rice value chain (with unique characteristics) in the Mekong Delta, bringing benefits to rice farmers and meeting the existing requirements of the SunRice market.

Sustainable rice production and value chain operations are seen as essential for small-scale rice growers in Vietnam. Mr McFarlane also announced plans to celebrate the 75th anniversary of SunRice Group and 100 years of commercial rice farming in Australia next month.

For his part, Ambassador Pham Hung Tam highly appreciated the contributions and effective operations of SunRice Group in Vietnam, congratulated the group on its memorable development milestone and expressed hope that the group will continue to have more similar projects aimed at farmers.

On this occasion, Ambassador Pham Hung Tam also introduced Mr. Anthony to the Lao Ambassador to Australia so that the two sides could connect and explore cooperation opportunities in the production of Halal-standard agricultural products and rice, opening up the possibility of cooperation between SunRice Group and Laos in particular, as well as contributing to promoting agricultural cooperation between Australia and Laos.

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/kinh-te/viet-nam-va-australia-day-manh-hop-tac-phat-trien-lua-gao-20251029153209572.htm