Vietnam is striving to develop salt industry by shifting into producing on large scale, according to the salt development program by 2020 submitted to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
The program will increase total industrial salt area to 9,000 hectares in 2020, from current 5,220ha while decreasing salt area on small scale from current 8,673ha to 6,000ha by the time.
To reach that goal, the Government has poured more than VND151 billion into Quan The Industrial Salt Project in central Ninh Thuan province.
The Government also encouraged local enterprises to invest in salt production, approving VND38 billion Vinh Hao salt field project in Tuy Phong district, Binh Thuan province by Thong Thuan Company and VND50 billion salt processing line and industrial salt field in Ninh Thuan by Van Phuoc Co. Ltd.
Vietnam is estimated to need 1.5 million tons of salt in 2010 and two million tons in 2020. Industrial salt output will occupy around 53 per cent-67 per cent, or some 800,000 tons, of total consumed salt volume.
Vietnam now has around 12,261 ha under salt cultivation, up 4.2 per cent on year with total output estimated at 880,000 tons.
In the first half of this year, the country exported US$220,000 worth of salt to Taiwan, Hong Kong, South Korea and the US. The figure is expected to reach US$800,000 by the year’s end.
However, the country will have to import 200,000 tons of salt, which mostly are refined and high quality because much locally made salt is still not fine enough.
Presently, a kilo of salt is offering at VND300-600 at local market.
Vietnamese salt worker is estimated to earn around VND350,000 each a month on small scale and VND900,000-1.7 million a month on large scale, on average. (Vietnam Economic Times)
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