Cocoa growers from Southeast Asian countries gathered in Ho Chi Minh City June 26 to seek ways to boost cooperation and develop cocoa industries in the region.
The World Coffee and Cocoa Organization said that the global demand for cocoa products has risen 4 per cent, with the U.S., Germany, France, Britain and Russia being the biggest consumers.
But cocoa supply is falling and unsustainable. West African countries like Ghana and Nigeria account for 60 per cent of the world&rsquos cocoa output, while ASEAN countries are emerging as new and potential cocoa suppliers.
Vietnamese cocoa is recognized to have specific taste, and day by day welcomed by foreign consumers.
Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Bui Ba Bong said that Vietnam&rsquos cocoa acreage reached more than 10,000 hectares in June this year, with current prices bringing in VND 47,000 for a kilogram of cocoa beans.
He said the growth of the industry was partly due to a Sustainable Cocoa Enterprise Solutions for Smallholders (SUCCESS) Alliance project which helped train thousands of Vietnamese farmers in cocoa cultivation, harvest and semi-processing techniques.
To further develop the industry, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has approved a cocoa development plan which aims to increase the country&rsquos cocoa-growing acreage to 60,000 hectares by 2015 and earn an export turnover of US$50-US$60 million.
Under the project, Vietnam targets to grow 80,000 hectares of cocoa by 2020, increase the total output of dry cocoa beans to 110,000 tons and earn an export turnover of US$100 million-US$120 million by 2020.
Last year, the country produced around 300 tons of cocoa beans. (Vietnam & World Economy, Vietnam Economic Times)
Vietnamese
