Agricultural production expands in HCMC despite acreage fall

A customer chooses vegetables on sale at a Co.opmart supermarket in HCMC. Agricultural production has expanded in HCMC in recent years even though the farming acreage has shrunk - PHOTO: THANH HOA

HCMC – Agricultural production has expanded in HCMC in recent years even though the farming acreage has shrunk, according to the city Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

A staggering VND47.5 trillion has been invested in the agriculture sector for the past five years, with production value soaring 2.7 times over 2010, said Nguyen Phuoc Trung, director of the department, at a Q&A session at the city People’s Council session on July 6.

He said agricultural production last year amounted to VND410 million per hectare, 2.7 times higher than in 2010, helped by the application of high technology.

Over the past six years, nearly 1,900 hectares of land has been converted into hi-tech vegetable, ornamental plant and dairy farms, among others, thereby raising the value of agricultural production by over VND10 trillion.

He said that of the VND47.5 trillion spent on agriculture in the past five years, around VND20.3 billion came from the State budget, over VND10 trillion from the city budget, and more than VND37 trillion from the private sector.