Three international fairs, Farm & Food Tech 2018, Vietnam Farm and Food Expo 2018 and Agritech Vietnam 2018, opened on Thursday in HCM City, featuring 200 booths from 150 local and foreign exhibitors.

Many of the exhibitors are from countries and territories that have advanced agricultural technology, including Korea, Japan, Malaysia, China and Taiwan.

The exhibitions feature a wide range of post-harvest preservation and treatment technology, machinery and equipment for food-safety testing and tracing product origin; food processing and printing and food packaging machinery and equipment; agricultural products; biotechnology; and gardening tools, among others.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Nguyen Phuong Dong, deputy director of the city’s Department of Industry and Trade, said that export of farm produce had reached US$10.3 billion in the first half of the year, a year-on-year increase of 9.7 per cent.

Exports in the latter half of the year are expected to enjoy higher growth compared to the first half.

“But as much as 90 per cent of Vietnamese farm produce was exported as raw material or as preliminary processed, both of which have low export value compared to the same products from other countries,” he said.

In addition, post-harvest losses remained high, at 14 per cent in the rice sector and 20-30 per cent in the fruit and vegetable sector, he said, adding that producers have had few opportunities to access post-harvest technologies.

The three fairs offer businesses a chance to introduce their latest agricultural technologies and learn about advanced technologies and equipment, as well as help producers and traders exchange information and explore business opportunities.

The events also help promote the use of technology in agricultural production and processing with the aim of improving productivity, quality and export value of the country’s agricultural products, according to Dong.

Organised by the department in collaboration with the HCM City Union of Business Associations, the expos will run until July 28 at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Centre. — VNS