Smuggling destroys Vietnam's sugar industry

Published 2024년 9월 13일

Tridge summary

The Vietnam Sugarcane and Sugar Association held a workshop to strategize on climate adaptation and boosting the competitiveness of the sugarcane industry, amidst challenges such as smuggled sugar and climate change. The industry has seen a significant decline, with 16 factories shutting down and many growers shifting to other crops due to cheap imported sugar. The situation was worsened by a surge in smuggled sugar in 2023 and 2024, despite arrests of smugglers. Additionally, the shift to high fructose corn syrup corn syrup by beverage companies has reduced the market for sugar. The association emphasizes the need for a robust production chain, a healthy sugar market, and measures to prevent commercial fraud. Gia Lai Province, a significant sugarcane producer, is struggling with limited mechanization and lack of concentrated cultivation. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has been urged to support the development of agricultural cooperatives and implement measures to prevent unfair competition and contract violations in sugarcane production.

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Original content

On September 13, in An Khe town (Gia Lai province), the Vietnam Sugarcane and Sugar Association held a workshop on climate adaptation strategies and improving the competitiveness of the Vietnamese sugarcane industry. At the workshop, Mr. Nguyen Van Loc, Chairman of the Vietnam Sugarcane and Sugar Association, said that smuggled sugar is destroying the Vietnamese sugarcane industry. In particular, the nature of the dumped sugar is originating from Thailand through Cambodia and Laos and then brought to Vietnam. This phenomenon has occurred for many years but has not been prevented. Before the sugar industry implemented its commitment in the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (import tax at 5%), Vietnam had 41 sugar factories, but by the 2021-2022 production season, only 25 factories were still operating, 16 factories were forced to close. It is worth mentioning that more than 100,000 sugarcane growing families had to switch to other crops. In particular, in the period of 2020 - 2022, ...

Source: Agriculture