ID :
343274
Thu, 10/02/2014 - 05:37
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New Zealand supports agricultural innovation in Vietnam

Tien Giang, October 2 (VNA) - The government of New Zealand has funded a 4 million USD project to reinvigorate agriculture in the Mekong Delta province of Tien Giang in the 2013- 2018 period. New Zealand Ambassador to Vietnam Haike Manning said the project was financed by the New Zealand Aid Programme, a partnership between New Zealand’s Plant for Food Research and Vietnam’s Southern Horticulture Research Institute (SOFRI) and Sub-Institute for Agriculture Engineering and Postharvest Technology (SIAEP). The project aims to apply new technology and advanced production processes in dragon fruit production to generate higher income for local farmers, and small and medium traders, particularly in the cultivation area of Cho Gao. After the first year of implementation, the project has achieved substantial results, breeding a new variety of dragon fruit and developing best practices for production, post-harvest and marketing models to increase revenue for local farmers. Within the framework of the project, SOFRI has cooperated closely with scientific organistations and local stakeholders in implementing a number of measures, including monitoring seasonal diseases that affect dragon fruit, organising training courses on crop varieties, boosting sustainable production, and applying advanced technology and methods in post-harvestand marketing with a view to exporting to New Zealand.-VNA

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