Chinese put hand into market, farm produce prices plunge dramatically
25-06-2012 12:52:24+07:00
Chinese put hand into market, farm produce prices plunge dramatically
Vietnamese farm produce have never before seen such tragic price decreases. The Chinese interference into the market, plus the epidemics and bad weather all have made farmers suffer.
Farmers in Mekong River Delta have been put on tenterhooks because of the continued price decreases since May. According to the Vietnam Food Association VFA, the IR 50404 fresh rice has dropped to 4000 dong per kilo, a decrease by 150 dong per kilo in comparison with one week ago. Long grain rice products have also dropped by 200 dong per kilo to 5100-5800 dong per kilo.
Farmers in the north and the central region are also facing the similar situation: the price has been decreasing dramatically. VFA has said that the export has been slowing down; therefore, exporters have stopped collecting rice from farmers. Meanwhile, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has attributed the price decreases to the profuse harvesting.
While affirming that there has been no big problem with the exports, VFA has admitted that Vietnam now has two redoubtable rivals – Thailand and India – which also have bountiful crops and have been boosting exports for fear that the demand would decrease in the world.
Other farm produce have also seen the prices drop dramatically. The pork and chicken prices have decreased as consumers have turned their backs to livestock products for fear about the prohibited substances used in farming.
Most recently, the coconut price has plunged in Mekong Delta. In Tien Giang province, farmers are selling 10 coconuts for 12,000 dong only. Ben Tre province has reported the sharp fall of 70 percent in prices. Local farmers, who have suffered from unsold coconuts, have to chop down coconut trees to grow others.
Vietnamese farmers surrender Chinese merchants?
Analysts have pointed out that farm produce prices decrease not only because of the bountiful crop, but because of the presence of Chinese merchants on the Vietnamese market.
The Chinese have been going to every corner in rural areas to collect farm produce. They pay high prices to control the market, encourage people to grow the trees they want and then unexpectedly stop collecting produce, thus leading the supply-demand instability and market chaos.
The story about the coconut price drops seems to be the most typical one about how Vietnamese have fallen into the traps of Chinese merchants. In 2011, Chinese flocked to Vietnam to collect coconuts. However, when the supply gets profuse, they do not buy coconuts any more.
As such, Vietnamese farmers and Vietnamese enterprises cannot control the farm produce right in the home market, which has caused serious consequences to the domestic agricultural production.
Chinese have been present everywhere in Vietnam, collecting everything they want, and generating chaos to all farm produce markets. When asked about the problem, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Cao Duc Phat said Vietnam only welcomes the foreign authentic businessmen who respect the Vietnamese laws.
Phat said his ministry is trying to give a hand to farmers to help ease the difficulties caused by the sharp price decreases. Phat would go to Mekong Delta in some days to do a market survey after which he would suggest the measures to help farmers make profit with rice.
As for coconuts, his ministry has asked the Ministry of Finance to slash the export tariff from 3 percent to zero percent.
vietnamnet
