VietNamNet Bridge – In the past 10 months Vietnam imported 4 million tons of corn from the US, Brazil, and Argentina, of which 80% was genetically modified corn.

After the Ministry of Agriculture & Rural Development officially allowed commercialization of genetically modified corn from March 18, 2015, DeKalb (USA) and Syngenta Vietnam (Switzerland) completed trial planting of genetically modified corn at over 200 places in Vietnam.

DeKalb Co. said it would sell seed corn to farmers from early November. It plans to cooperate with 800,000 households. The price for 1kg of seed corn is VND190,000 ($9), VND10,000/kg higher than the usual corn.

"Initially we will support farmers in farming techniques. Our goal is to help farmers convert 12-15% of the corn fields from usual to genetically modified species. In the next five years, the area may reach 50%," said DeKalb representative Narasim Upadhyayula.

Upadhyayula did not disclose the total amount of seed corn sold on the market but he said the volume is quite large and the seeds are imported from South Africa. In the next few years, the company will probably build factories in Vietnam.

Syngenta said that their seeds are imported from the Philippines and they began selling the product to the local market in April this year. The company is pushing for the introduction, training and technical transfer of genetically modified corn to farmers.

According to the two companies, planting genetically modified maize, farmers will not have to pay VND2-3 million ($100-$150)/hectare for pesticides because this species is resistant to pests. Farmers will have to use specialized herbicides, which is sprayed only once, 30 days after sowing.

Using Syngenta seeds, farmers in some major maize growing areas as Son La, Ba Ria and Dong Nai had average output higher than average from 10% to 30% and profit increased from VND5 to VND10 million ($250-$500) per hectare than conventional hybrids. 

For those who used DeKalb’s species, the average productivity rose from 8 tons to 8.5 tons per hectare in the Mekong Delta.

Farmer Nguyen Hong Lam in Dong Nai province said that genetically modified maize yields higher productivity. His profit also increased from VND5-6 million/hectare to VND8-9 million/hectare. 

Lam said his family has 3ha of agricultural land and he would plant genetically modified corn on about 50% of the area.

Farmer Luu Van Tran from Phu Tho province praised the new corn variety for its resistance against weeds and insects.

Farmers said that they were not worried about the output for genetically modified corn because traders did not complain about the quality of the new variety.

DeKalb said that it would work with agricultural trading companies and animal feed producers to seek  output for farmers.

On the part of the livestock companies, CP Vietnam representative said it has to import corn from the US and Brazil. If Vietnam has new product of good quality, it is ready to purchase.

"Vietnam’s maize production is very low. We have had to import genetically modified maize and soybeans from other countries for processing animal feed for ten years. And even the people have used many genetically modified products for years. Therefore, this is a positive move to help farmers increase income and simultaneously improve corn productivity of Vietnam," said the director of Thanh Binh Animal Feed Company.

Le Ba Lich, Chairman of the Vietnam Animal Feed Association, said that so far this year Vietnam imported 4 million tons of corn from the US, Brazil, Argentina and others, of which 80% was genetically modified corn. The total volume for the whole 2015 may reach 4.5 million tons.

Lich said animal feed producers in Vietnam need 8 -10 million tons of raw materials but the local market can satisfy only 50% so planting genetically modified maize to increase productivity and reduce pest should be supported.

However, Lich said that the price for genetically modified seed corn is still higher than conventional varieties for about VND10,000/kg. Thus, for each hectare of maize, farmers will have to pay an additional VND1.6 to VND2 million for seeds, and they have to depend on foreign companies for seeds.

If they fully use genetically modified products for livestock and poultry, fisheries and insects (like bees), the products will be only sold in some countries accepting genetically modified products, not the big markets as Europe and Japan. 

Lich said that the firms exporting goods to picky markets should be careful in using genetically modified materials. 

Meanwhile, the authorities of Vietnam should closely managed the use of genetically modified varieties and research new varieties with high competitiveness so that Vietnamese farmers would not have to depend on foreign suppliers in the future.

US$1 = VND22,500

Tran Cham