Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

Today was an exciting day! We headed north out of the bustling, vibrant city of Ho Chi Minh and headed towards the Cu Chi region. We were all looking forward to seeing a more rural part of Vietnam. Our travels today took us to a rubber plantation, a hi-tech research park, a worm and cow farm (we'll explain that connection in a bit) and then finished off our day with a history lesson about the Vietnam war while exploring the Cu Chi tunnels.

Our first stop was a 400 ha rubber plantation. Rubber 'milk' is harvested 6 months of the year and approximately 100 people work at this plantation. Currently the price for rubber is very low (50 cents/L) and so many farms are being converted to organic vegetable farms. In Vietnam, all land is leased from the government, typically on 20-year leases.

Next, we made a quick stop at the hi-tech agricultural park. The park consists of an 88 ha property with many greenhouses containing technology from Israel. One goal of the park is to train farmers how to produce food organically. The demand for organic food is also increasing in Vietnam.

After the park visit, we met a couple who run a vermiculture farm, a dairy farm and a shoe factory. The husband manages the shoe factory and the wife manages the farm enterprises. Two years ago, the couple found an innovative way to utilize the dairy manure for an additional source of income. Worms and dairy manure are combined to produce compost for the rubber tree plantations and for neighbouring organic farms. The worms are also harvested regularly for two main reasons. One, the worms are dehydrated and the reconstituted with water and used as a foliar product on the rubber trees to prevent disease. Two, the worms are used as a protein source/supplement for chickens, cows and fish.

The vermiculture farm was set up in between rows of rubber trees on approximately 2 ha. Interestingly, the couple rents the land on a 2-year contract from the renter of the rubber plantation. Next stop was the dairy farm which consisted of 20 dairy cows, milked twice a day at 5 am and 4 pm. Average milk production is about 200 L of milk per day at this farm.

The afternoon was spent learning more about the Vietnam war and the Cu Chi tunnels. This elaborate web of tunnels, amongst many other things, showcased the resilience and resourcefulness of the Vietnamese people. Despite the fact that many Vietnamese and Americans were once enemies, today these two countries have strong ties.


Tomorrow we head to Da Lat!

Views: 333

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

Federal leaders promising to protect supply management

Liberal, Conservative and Bloc leaders are committed to preserving supply management

Canada invests $567M in African swine fever prevention, preparedness

The Government of Canada is committed to protecting the resilience of Canada's rural communities and the Canadian pork sector by supporting prevention efforts and preparing to respond in the event of an African swine fever outbreak. Last week Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Lawrence MacAulay announced a commitment of up to $567.16 million to support hog producers should there be a closure of key export markets for Canadian pork products and live pigs due to an ASF outbreak in Canada or the United States. While Canada remains free of ASF, a single detection of ASF in Canada would close export markets due to international trade regulations and import restrictions imposed by trading partners. Canada is heavily dependent on pork and live pig exports, and the closure of key export markets would be devastating to the pork sector. It would cause hog producers to incur extraordinary costs and force them to make difficult decisions about depopulating their herds. "Thanks to the hard wor

Using Models to Enhance Sow Productivity

Modern swine production demands precision in feeding high-prolific sows to ensure both longevity and optimal performance. Over the past decade, advances in sow genetics and feeding systems have reinforced the need for accurate nutritional programs that prevent overfeeding or underfeeding individual sows. Advanced sow nutritional and management models offer swine nutritionists reliable, data-driven insights to support long-term productivity. When provided with accurate information on sow genotype, productivity, feed programs, and barn environmental data, these models have proven effective in helping producers refine feeding strategies, optimize production, and reduce feed costs. Even minor improvements in feeding precision can result in substantial economic benefits. The role of models in sow nutrition Advanced analysis and predictive modelling capabilities can assist swine nutritionists in designing sow feeding programs by integrating complex data on genetics, production history, and

NPPC asks Canada to exclude U.S. pork from retaliatory tariffs

The National Pork Producers Council has urged the Canadian government to exempt pork from any retaliatory tariffs levied on U.S. products in response to President Trump’s duties on imports from Canada. The United States exported more than $850 million of pork to Canada in 2024, while the country sent $1.7 billion of pork to the United States. Additionally, Canada exported more than $560 million worth of live swine to the United States last year, primarily to U.S. finishing and slaughter facilities where they were comingled with U.S. swine, and much of the pork was later exported back to Canada. Trump has pledged to impose the tariffs on Canada – and China and Mexico – as a way to reduce the flow of illegal immigration and fentanyl into the United States, as well as to address an $80 billion trade deficit with Canada. In written comments to Canada’s Department of Finance, NPPC noted that “[T]he tit-for-tat tariff exchanges will disrupt supply chains that have been built up over decad

NPPC requests pork be exempt from Canada’s retaliatory tariffs

Years of work poured into building an integrated US-Canada pork market may come falling down as the Canadian government seeks to enact retaliatory tariffs on US products after the Trump administration imposed 25% tariffs on imports from Canada. In hopes of retaining the countries’ strong trade relationship, the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) wrote to the Canadian government asking that pork products be exempt from any retaliatory tariffs levied on US products. “The tit-for-tat tariff exchanges will disrupt supply chains that have been built up over decades,” the group wrote to Canada’s International Trade Policy Division on March 21. “We request that Canada seeks to preserve the benefits of the integrated North American market to the maximum extent practicable, including by excluding US pork imports from retaliation.” In 2024, the United States exported more than $850 million worth of pork to Canada, while Canada shipped $1.7 billion lbs of pork to the United States. Canada a

© 2025   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service