Agriculture and fishing

The falling price of rice in Asia due to the slowing global economy and intensifying regional competition is taking a toll on Cambodian exporters and farmers even though exports jumped more than 20 percent last month compared to January last year, executives said. ...

Although over half of its rice exports were to China last year, it remains a highly competitive market amongst other rice exporters, namely Thailand, Pakistan, and Cambodia, said Bui Huy Hoang, Vietnam’s commercial counselor in China. ...

The government will consider suspending its $50 per ton export duty on rubber following lobbying by local producers who say they are operating at a loss due to the sharp fall in global prices for the commodity, Agriculture Ministry secretary of state Eang Sophalleth said ...

The tonnage of Cambodia’s agricultural exports increased by over 20 per cent last year, led by a surge in shipments of dried cassava chips, according to the latest Ministry of Agriculture data. ...

Although bilateral trade between India and Cambodia remains low, investors from the subcontinent are eying the market here for its potential as a regional hub for their agricultural, machinery and industrial products, B. Sarkar, executive director of the Engineering Export Promotion Council (EEPC) of India, ...

Indigenous peoples fighting economic land concessions (ELCs) in Cambodia are more likely to get results with violent protest than lodging their complaints through legitimate channels, a controversial study published this month argues. ...

Australian banking giant ANZ has come under fire for its response to a scandal over its financing of a sugar plantation previously linked to forced evictions and child labour in Kampong Speu province. ...

Two men have been arrested over, and a military official implicated in, illegal logging that took place at the protected Phnom Samkos Wildlife Sanctuary last week. ...

Government officials, economists and businesses discussed the implementation of a draft program to invigorate vegetable farming in the Kingdom and cut imports from neighbouring countries in half by 2018.   ...

The River Coalition of Cambodia, along with 13 other NGOs, released a letter yesterday requesting Prime Minister Hun Sen demand the Lao government to cancel the construction of their Don Sahong hydropower dam and also pause all hydropower projects along the Mekong River due to ...

A fire burned through 45 hectares of sugarcane plantation belonging to three companies in Svay Rieng province’s Svay Tiep district on Tuesday, with one company representative suspecting that the fire was intentionally set. ...

Almost a year after cassava producers in Pailin were fingered as the source of pollution in a local water source, little has been done to address the problem, commune officials said yesterday, while affected villagers are being forced to buy bottled water to avoid getting ...

The Cambodia Rice Federation yesterday raised fresh concerns about the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (FTA), after an online rice-industry portal said the deal will scrap import duties on about 80,000 tons of rice from Vietnam per year and that this could start this year. ...

The Federation of Associations for Small and Medium Enterprises of Cambodia is planning to propose that the government set up special economic zone (SEZ) for small and medium-sized sized enterprises (SMEs) so that they can work in clusters, saying this will enhance their productivity, increase ...

Cambodian rice exports are finding new markets and rising demand in ASEAN this year, but officials and exporters are not linking this to the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), saying it was too early to tell what impact the regional trade bloc – which took effect ...

Civil society groups are calling for Laos’ Don Sahong hydropower dam project to be discussed when Southeast Asian leaders meet with U.S. President Barack Obama next week. ...

Cambodian trade officials are urging their Chinese counterparts to boost imports of Cambodian rubber, cassava, sugar and pepper to narrow the trade imbalance between the two countries, officials said after a meeting last week. ...

Environmental experts concern of a drop in the number of rare species of fish in the river in the northeastern province including of the Upper Mekong Basin, Srepok River and Se San river. The worry after a number of exotic fish caught in the area’s ...

Cambodian agricultural experts are suggesting a national standard for organic products.Cambodian farmers are increasingly growing organic rice and vegetables in some places, but there is no official certification available. ...

A Chinese-owned agricultural company will inaugurate a $360 million sugar mill in northern Cambodia next month, in what is being billed as one of Asia’s largest sugar processing facilities. ...

South Korean investment in Cambodia’s agricultural industry, especially its food-processing sector, could result in the export of more value-added products that could help transform the Kingdom’s economy, a senior official at the Council for the Development of Cambodia and Korean officials told an investment forum ...

Only 80 Mekong River dolphins remain. Conservation efforts are underway in Cambodia but these unique animals are facing a new threat from a mega dam in neighboring Lao. ...

At the close of the three-day annual Cambodia Rice Forum, Commerce Minister Sun Chanthol on Tuesday suggested that the first-rate rice brand set to be launched on the international market this year be marketed as “Extra Premium” jasmine rice. ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen is pushing government institutions and businesses to improve the country’s rice production. Investment is required in machinery and warehouses to dry and store rice for export, something Cambodia is discussing with China, Hun Sen said. ...