Vietnam, the world's second-largest rice exporter after Thailand, plans to raise output this year to 41 million tonnes of paddy, up 2.5 percent from 2010 when it already shipped a record volume, a state-run newspaper reported on Wednesday. Higher production of the staple in Vietnam would not only help secure more food security for a population of 87 million, but also raise the country's export capacity, thus helping to ease pressure on regional and global food supply.
Agriculture Minister Cao Duc Phat said the country should strive for the output from 7.37 million hectares (18.2 million acres) under plantation, the official Vietnam Economic Times newspaper reported. The target, revised up from a government projection for 2011 of 39.75 million tonnes, was announced after Vietnam harvested a bumper winter-spring crop, with paddy output rising slightly to 19.47 million tonnes, the newspaper said.
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