Vietnamese rice yet to be exported under national brand

CAN THO – Nearly a year after the logo for Vietnamese rice was introduced, no local rice shipments have been exported under the national brand.

Purple rice is displayed at the third Rice Festival in Long An Province. Vietnamese rice has yet to be exported under the national brand - PHOTO: TRUNG CHANH

At a press briefing today, November 12, to introduce the fourth Rice Festival in the Mekong Delta province of Vinh Long, Nguyen Anh Dung from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development’s Farm Produce Processing and Market Development Department told the Saigon Times that before introducing the logo in December last year, the ministry had held a contest to choose the logo.

The ministry later registered the logo with the Madrid System, a system for the registration of worldwide trademarks.

However, the process is complicated. The ministry and the Vietnam Food Association are still preparing the paperwork, so the logo has yet to be used.

The fourth Rice Festival was scheduled to take place from December 13 to 19 in Vinh Long Province. The event is expected to feature 800 booths. By November 10, exhibitors had registered for 443 booths.

At the festival, the organizer will also host specialized seminars on the legal framework and policies for developing cooperatives; conditions needed to develop the agriculture sector, focusing on rice; policies that support rice growers; and rural development.

The event will also include rice and rice-based dish cooking contests.