Vietnam, Netherlands cooperate in sustainable cacao development

The Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) and the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (LNV) is co-organizing a conference on November 6-7 to boost Vietnam’s state-private cooperation in sustainable cacao development.

Participants discussed Vietnam’s ecological changes, the competitiveness of cacao as compared with other plants and the environmental, economic and social sustainability of cacao development in the country.

The same day, MARD and LNV signed a memorandum of understanding to promote their partnership in the field.

MARD said it will approve a strategy for cacao development in 2009, with the aim of raising the cacao plantations from 10,000ha to 60,000ha in 2015 and 80,000ha in 2020.