Industrial crops

The cinnamon-growing area of Tra My in Quang Nam province in central Vietnam is moving away from exporting raw bark toward deeper processing into essential oils, cosmetics, and health foods. We read the value-adding strategy of the world's largest cinnamon exporter from a Japanese buyer's perspective.

In Son Ray, Dong Nai province, Vietnam, more than 100 households operate an organic-pepper estate of about 200 hectares. We interpret the move to target European exports through automatic irrigation, net collection, and biological pest control, and its implications for Japanese raw-material buyers.

On the Moc Chau plateau in Son La province, 35-year-old Vu Van Hieu realized greenhouse bell-pepper cultivation using a "next-generation smart farming" project backed by the FAO and the South Korean government. He harvested 18 tonnes from 1,836 square meters, securing a gross profit of about 20 million yen in three months.

Overview: Vietnam's sugarcane production is about 12 million tonnes a year, with a cultivated area of about 300,000 hectares. It plays an important role in domestic sugar self-sufficiency, but a lack of competitiveness against international prices is a challenge. In recent years the cultivated area has been trending down, with a shift toward higher-value alternative crops...

Overview: Vietnam is the world's third-largest producer of natural rubber, with annual production of about 1.2 million tonnes. Its output ranks after Thailand and Indonesia, and it is also third in world natural-rubber exports. Natural rubber is an essential raw material across a wide range of industries, including tires, industrial goods, and medical goods. The cultivated area...

Vietnamese name Tay Ninh Area 4,030 km2 Population about 1.2 million Climate tropical monsoon climate. Annual average temperature 27 degrees C. Overview: Tay Ninh province is a southern province bordering Cambodia and a major producing area for sugarcane and rubber. It is also known for being home to the holy see of the Cao Dai religion. Tay Ninh...

Vietnamese name Binh Duong Area 2,695 km2 Population about 2.6 million Climate tropical monsoon climate. Annual average temperature 27 degrees C. Overview: Binh Duong province borders Ho Chi Minh City to the north and is one of the most industrialized provinces in Vietnam. Even so, rubber plantations spread across the hilly areas in the north, and...

Vietnamese name Nam Bo Area about 44,000 km2 (excluding the Mekong Delta) Population about 18 million Climate tropical monsoon climate. High temperatures year-round (26–28 degrees C). A clear wet season (May–November) and dry season. Overview: Southern Vietnam (the southeast) is the economic heart centered on Ho Chi Minh City. Rapid...

Vietnamese name Gia Lai Area 15,537 km2 Population about 1.55 million Provincial capital / main city Pleiku City Climate tropical highland climate. Annual average temperature 22–25 degrees C. Overview: Gia Lai province is the largest province by area in the Central Highlands, a region characterized by large-scale plantations. Large estates developed from state farms...

Vietnamese name Thanh Hoa Area 11,116 km2 Population about 3.6 million Provincial capital / main city Thanh Hoa City Climate subtropical monsoon climate. Prone to typhoon impacts. Overview: Thanh Hoa province is the third most populous province in Vietnam and is called "the bridge between the north and the center." Vast...