The Vietnamese government's 'Mekong Delta One Million Hectare High-Quality Low-Emission Rice Program' is spreading at a pace far exceeding its initial targets. According to the latest announcement by the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (MAE) (as of April 2026), against an initial two-year target of 180,000 hectares, the actual participating area has reached 354,839 hectares (197% of the target). Groundbreaking results have been quantified: seed use down 45%, fertilizer down 30%, irrigation water down 20%, production cost down 40%, yield up 12%, and greenhouse-gas reduction of 3–4 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per hectare.
News details
The program is jointly driven by the MAE, the Vietnam Food Association (VFA) and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), with funding and technical support from the World Bank (MOM-P project), USDA-Fertilize Right and CGIAR Scaling for Impact. In its pilot model, IRRI systematized techniques such as mechanized row seeding plus deep placement of fertilizer, the introduction of an MRV (measurement, reporting and verification) system, and the recycling of rice straw.
The main results as of April 2026 are as follows. (1) A participating area of 354,839 hectares; (2) certified low-emission rice on 18,086 hectares (production capacity 75,060 tonnes); (3) a first export of 500 tonnes of certified low-emission rice to Japan; (4) additional farmer profit of 6 million dong per hectare per crop. In the case of the Go Gon Agricultural Cooperative in Tay Ninh province (53 hectares), production cost per hectare was cut by 4.62 million dong, yield rose from 7.5 to 8.5 tonnes, and net profit reached 32.77 million dong.
Background: why '197% of target' happened
The key to the rapid spread is that the economic rationale for farmers was proved immediately. Because the total input of seed, fertilizer, water and labor drops sharply while yield and earnings rise at the same time, farmers judging it profitable on economics alone — without waiting for subsidies or certification — came in a chain. On top of this, the early presentation of a scheme design in which the World Bank buys carbon credits for low-emission rice at US$10 per tonne spurred the appetite to participate.
The combination of mechanized row seeding and deep placement of fertilizer greatly reduces losses of seed and fertilizer compared with conventional broadcast sowing and surface fertilizing. MRV is a mechanism that lets governments, international organizations and private buyers confirm whether rice is truly low-emission, and it supports both wheels of credit sales and premium low-emission-rice sales on the world market.
Summary of quantitative results
| Item | Figure | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Initial target area | 180,000 ha | Two-year target |
| Actual area | 354,839 ha | 197% of target |
| Seed use | −45% | — |
| Fertilizer use | −30% | — |
| Irrigation water use | −20% | — |
| Number of pesticide applications | −2 to 3 times per crop | — |
| Production cost | −40% | — |
| Yield | +12% | — |
| Additional farmer profit | +6 million dong/ha/crop | about 35,000 yen |
| GHG reduction | 3–4 tonnes CO2/ha/crop | — |
| Certified area | 18,086 ha | Output 75,060 tonnes |
| Exports to Japan | 500 tonnes (first) | — |
Industry and local reaction
An official of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment commented, 'The 197% achievement rate is the result of spreading on economic rationale rather than reliance on subsidies. The one-million-hectare target, too, can be reached ahead of schedule by 2030.' IRRI's Vietnam representative rates it, saying, 'Mechanized row seeding, deep placement of fertilizer and MRV are a general-purpose model that can be rolled out horizontally to Southeast Asia's rice-growing powers.'
The World Bank is expected to begin full-scale purchasing of certified credits from the second half of 2026. The VFA (Vietnam Food Association) analyzes that 'if credit-sales income begins to arise on the scale of US$100 per hectare per year, the structure of farmer income will change.' The People's Committees of Tay Ninh, Dong Thap and Can Tho provinces have stated a policy of raising the participating area by a further twofold in next year's budget.
Practical information for Japanese agriculture stakeholders and importers
The 500-tonne export of certified low-emission rice to Japan is a symbolic lot as a product for Japan's SDG compliance and decarbonization appeal. Trading companies, supermarkets and OEM makers have the material to sell it, story included, as a sustainable-procurement product. There is also room for premium pricing, and it is especially easy to pitch as environmentally conscious rice to the public sector such as school lunches, hospital meals and corporate cafeterias.
In procurement practice, the MRV system built by IRRI and MAE makes GHG-reduction results traceable by lot. This can also be used for Scope 3 emissions management in Japanese companies' CSR reports and securities filings. Furthermore, on the Japanese side, a joint pilot with a Vietnamese precision-agriculture company if you put together such a project, a scheme to secure priority procurement lots through support for technology adoption is also effective.
Ripple effects on the industry
If this program is standardized, Mekong Delta rice farming will change its position from commodity-rice producer to climate-asset-plus-premium-rice producer. Farmers gain a two-tier earnings structure of credit-sales income plus a premium unit price, rather than unit price alone. This also has a long-term uplift effect on the GDP of the entire Mekong Delta.
At the same time, pressure to shift toward lower usage and specialized performance bears on seed, fertilizer, pesticide and farm-machinery makers. For seed, high-germination varieties suited to mechanized row seeding; for fertilizer, slow-release types suited to deep placement; and for farm machinery, precision machines with MRV-linked sensors are expected to become standard specifications.
Practical information summary
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Program name | Mekong Delta 1 million hectare high-quality, low-emission rice plan |
| Lead | Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (MAE) · VFA · IRRI |
| Support | World Bank (MOM-P) · USDA · CGIAR |
| Achievement rate | 197% (355,000 ha / 180,000 ha target) |
| Credit price | US$10/tonne (World Bank purchase) |
| Export to Japan | 500 tonnes (certified lot) |
| Reference case | Go Gon Agricultural Cooperative, Tay Ninh province (53 ha) |
Summary
The 197% achievement rate of the Mekong Delta low-emission rice program is symbolic data showing that an economic-rationale-based spread, not one reliant on subsidies, is happening. The simultaneous input-output improvement of seed down 45%, fertilizer down 30%, yield up 12% and cost down 40% becomes a powerful message from Vietnam to the world's rice-farming models. For those involved on the Japanese side, the next few years are a good opportunity for business design on three fronts: certified-lot procurement, carbon-credit-linked trade and technical collaboration.
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