Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

Da Lat offers a wealth of new experiences

On our last day in Da Lat, an early hotel departure involved some classmates taking in the sights and sounds of the open-air market we had lived beside for the last few days, while others followed the health and wellness team with stretches and dancing in the hotel lobby.

Before heading to the airport, we began with a tour of a local supermarket newly built underground. Owned by a Thailand company, this supermarket was very similar to the supermarkets we have in Canada. This is new for the Vietnamese people, offering an alternative to the open air farmers markets. After overcoming the shock of fish heads on ice and live eels ready to purchase, the class started to compare prices from Vietnam to Canada.

It was interesting to discover, a litre of milk in Vietnam is approximately 1 Canadian dollar, a can of Coke is 25 cents and a one-litre bottle of water was 45 to 50 cents. As you can see, the pricing ratio between Coke and Milk is similar to Canada.

Following the supermarket adventure, we travelled to an artichoke farm. This farmer utilized every inch of his land even though PowerLine towers were installed on his land. His artichokes were being grown for tea.

Following this farm tour, we headed off to meet Loc Troi, the largest agricultural company in Vietnam with 4,000 employees working together to sell best practices, farm protection and production systems. What was interesting and different was that Loc Troi showcased their products by growing and executing test plots on their land. They invite farmers to come and view the plots, explain to them how the products and growing systems work, for the farmer to decide if they want to buy the product and which product would be the right fit -- a different take from the Canadian sales strategy. At this location they were also working on several new greenhouse projects including a new variety of pepper.

After lunch, and before a speedy ride to the airport, we quickly stopped in at a peppercorn farm. This was an interesting stop as many of us in the class didn't know how peppercorn was grown. Peppercorn is grown on vines and encouraged to grow upwards around a support pole, almost tree-like.

With goodbyes to our great tour guide and wonderful experience at Da Lat, it was off to the airport and on to Hanoi for our next step in this adventure. Upon our arrival we were meet by Danny our guide for the next four days. In this city of 8 million, traffic was even crazier than Ho Chi Minh City. Our first drive through the city showed a significant influence of French architecture from the period the French-occupied Vietnam.

The day ended with another amazing meal finishing the day explo‎ring our new surroundings.

Views: 347

Comment

You need to be a member of Ontario Agriculture to add comments!

Join Ontario Agriculture

Agriculture Headlines from Farms.com Canada East News - click on title for full story

Crop research a better long-term solution than BRM programs: USask Professor

Agricultural research requires investment, but it takes many years to develop a higher yielding crop variety or one with improved disease resistance. Recently announced funding and job cuts by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada are expected to impact the quantity and possibly the quality of new research in both the crop and livestock sectors. Richard Gray is a professor and grains policy chair at the University of Saskatchewan and was a key note speaker Thursday at the Top Crop Summit in Saskatoon. "I think the lack of a plan to how they were actually going to do some of the activities that were happening on those farms, that's a problem, and second, I don't think there was enough thought given to whether the sites that they were closing down were important for overall productivity of the researchers that remain." Gray said of the pending closures of research sites across Canada. The Indian Head research site represented about 35 per cent of the crop area in the province and was loca

Malta bee exporter blasts criticism from Canadian beekeepers

A European honeybee provider said they’re collateral damage to a dust-up in the Canadian honey sector over replacement bees. Ermanno De Chino, CEO of Melita Bees, a firm based on the Mediterranean island of Malta, said Italian and Maltese bee biosecurity and quality are the subject of unwarranted “smears” coming from a Canadian beekeeping contingent. He said they’re “pushing for the opening of the border with the United States,” a country he said is extremely vulnerable to the tropilaelaps (tropi) mite threat. “There’s little science and a lot of politics in all of this,” he wrote in a Feb. 10 email. In a separate email, De Chino described the risk of tropilaelaps entering the U.S. as “very high” due to the “enormous” number of cargo ships from Asia arriving at the ports of California, Texas, and Florida: three states with tropi mite-friendly weather conditions. “Swarms of Asian bees arriving in containers would have an easy time establishing themselves in these areas. The enormous

LDC commissions pea protein isolate production facility in Yorkton

Louis Dreyfus Company (LDC) has announced the start of commissioning for its new pea protein isolate (PPI) production facility in Yorkton. Alongside pea protein, LDC will also commercialize pea fiber and a proprietary pea starch produced at the new Yorkton facility, for the pet food, building materials and paper industries. Strategically located in one of the world’s largest pea-producing regions, at the site of LDC’s existing oilseeds processing complex, the new pea protein isolate plant is expected to employ some 60 people by the end of 2026, states a news release issued by LDC. The facility is currently in its commissioning phase, covering both wet and dry processing, which will be completed over the next couple of months, with commercial volumes expected to be available by mid-June, says LDC. The site will be among the largest pea processing facilities in North America, serving key segments of the plant-based market, including high-protein beverages and powder mixes, dairy alter

Groups call for mandatory labeling of genetically engineered pork products

No laws in Canada mandate specific labels for genetically engineered foods

Reinforcing Market Support at IAOM Latin America Conference

Engaging, learning, and networking were top of mind for attendees at the International Association of Operative Millers’ (IAOM) 49th Latin American Region Annual Conference and Expo, held in February in Guadalajara, Mexico. Lisa Nemeth, Cereals Canada director of market support and training, was among the presenters at the event, which attracted over 280 milling professionals from twenty-five countries. Nemeth presented on the quality of Canadian cereals, the Canadian quality assurance system, and the market support that Cereals Canada delivers to its customers. Nemeth shared that customers were happy to see Canadian cereals represented at the conference. On average, Canada exports 5.9 million tonnes of non-durum wheat to Latin America per year. Over the last five years, the largest markets in the region for Canadian cereals were Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, and Mexico. “Latin America loves Canadian cereals,” said Nemeth. “Mexico is an important market for Canada Western Red Spring (CWR

© 2026   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service