Farmers in Vietnam's Mekong Delta have started harvesting the winter-spring crop early and high yields are expected in what is the country's largest crop, a state-run newspaper reported on Thursday. The harvest has begun on fields around the Delta city of Can Tho and in the neighbouring provinces of Hau Giang, Soc Trang, Kien Giang and Bac Lieu, with yields of between 6 and 7 tonnes per hectare, the Rural Today newspaper said.
Last year the crop in southern provinces incorporating the Mekong Delta, the country's main rice-growing area, yielded 6.39 tonnes per hectare, up 3 percent from 2009, government statistics show. An Agriculture Ministry official was quoted as saying on Tuesday it could be a bumper winter-spring crop this year, similar to last year's, despite concerns over salinity after flooding.
Early supply from the harvest has not yet had an impact on the Delta's paddy prices, standing this week at 6,000-6,700 dong (30.8-34.4 US cents) per kg, a rise of 14 percent from a year ago. The crop, the best among three grown annually in the Mekong Delta, mainly produces 5 percent broken rice.
On Monday Vietnam raised the floor price for its 25 percent broken grain ahead of negotiations with the Philippines, prompting Manila to bring forward its grain purchase plans, possibly to early February. Vietnamese traders said the Philippines would allow private companies to import rice first and use the contracted price in their deals as an indicator for further government deals. Vietnam was expected to secure deals to sell 1 million tonnes to the Philippines this year as part of its demand for 1.5 million tonnes in imports, Vietnamese rice industry officials have said.
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