Dr. Nguyễn Văn Hùng, senior scientific expert at International Rice Research Institute (IRRI). VNS Photo Tố Như

Project for One Million Hectares of Rice provides an opportunity for public-private co-operation and brings many opportunities for experience exchange and future collaborations to address complex issues and expand emission-reduction production technology. Dr Nguyễn Văn Hùng, senior scientific expert at International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), spoke with Việt Nam News reporter Tố Như on this issue.

As an organisation collaborating with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) in implementing the One Million Hectares of Rice Project from its inception, we have implemented five pilot sites in the Mekong Delta region. How would you assess the project in the areas where we have conducted trials?

The "Sustainable Development of One Million Hectares of High-Quality, Low-Emission Rice Specialisation Linked to Green Growth in the Mekong Delta by 2030" project (abbreviated as "the Project") is the first large-scale low-carbon rice production programme implemented in the world, aiming to create a "revolution" in rice production.

The Project is being implemented in twelve provinces and cities in the Mekong Delta. Before wider implementation, MARD has established pilot fields in five localities, including Cần Thơ, Trà Vinh, Sóc Trăng, Kiên Giang, and Đồng Tháp.

Through pilot models and demonstration of technologies, the applied projects have attracted participation from provinces and farmers. Previously, this did not receive much enthusiasm from them.

Although the implementation of the Project has not been specialised for each province, the current techniques are being applied uniformly across the localities participating in the Project.

The technologies help save water and reduce emissions, bringing positive impacts to net income.

For instance, the alternate wetting and drying (AWD) method saves up to 33 per cent water and reduces methane emissions by 47 per cent; the use of laser land levelling reduces water consumption by 12-40 per cent and methane emissions by 14-22 per cent.

Additionally, the development of a circular economy from rice straw transforms by-products into high-value products.

Traditionally, burning rice straw causes environmental pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, nutrient loss, and biodiversity reduction. Meanwhile, burying straw in flooded conditions leads to high methane emissions.

The solution is mechanised straw collection, organic fertiliser production, biochar, animal feed, mushroom cultivation, biogas, and some bio-plastic/straw pot products.

This helps improve soil health and productivity, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and increase income from by-products, including carbon credit sales.

IRRI has also developed region-specific nutrient management recommendations. This solution helps increase yield, optimise fertiliser use, enhance income, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, particularly nitrous oxide.

Using short-duration rice varieties helps reduce the waterlogged period, thus decreasing methane emissions. Mechanical direct seeding at low seeding rates, combined with fertiliser incorporation, saves 60-70kg per hectare (50 per cent) of seeds, 30 per cent of nitrogen fertiliser, reduces lodging, and lowers pest incidence while yielding similar or higher productivity, increasing profits by US$145-248 per hectare, and reducing carbon footprint by 12-25 per cent, depending on the season.

If emissions from pesticide production or use are considered, these also contribute significantly to the carbon footprint of the entire rice life cycle.

Additionally, healthier rice plants reduce lodging rates, thereby decreasing post-harvest losses by at least 50 per cent (from field scattering, and poor grain quality).

This reduction in losses will be significant, especially in the Mekong Delta's rice production.

Monitoring water management and measuring greenhouse gas emissions under the standards initially set by MARD shows an initial emission reduction of at least two tonnes of CO2 per hectare, which is a meaningful figure.

Overall, the technical procedures, farmer participation across regions, and the mobilisation of domestic and international resources in the One Million Hectares of High-Quality Rice Project demonstrate significant progress.

In addition to previously applied technical solutions, such as mechanised precise seeding, “1 Must, 5 Reductions” (one obligatory step and five reductions), some solutions also focus on optimal nutrient management for rice and using rice varieties that adapt to climate change. Can you elaborate on these solutions in producing low-emission, high-quality rice?

Việt Nam is currently one of the world’s leading rice exporters. To reduce emissions, we must first consider reducing the time rice remains in the field.

Therefore, we research varieties to shorten growth periods to about 100 days. Additionally, we use rice varieties adapted to climate change, such as those that tolerate certain salinity levels, brief submergence periods, and reduce emissions through root traits, thereby reducing methane emissions.

Throughout the rice growth cycle, nutrient management is essential for emission reduction and grain quality improvement.

Fundamentally, we assess soil surface, soil structure, mechanisation quality, to increase oxygen and reduce methane. Only by optimising nutrient management can methane and nitrous oxide emissions from fertilisers be reduced.

Moreover, straw management is critically important. In the Mekong Delta, there is a two-week gap between the Winter-Spring and Summer-Autumn seasons. Burying straw during this period can double greenhouse gas emissions.

Therefore, we are exploring the option of removing straw from the field, though this is not feasible everywhere.

Thus, technologies for straw management, soil management, and straw decomposition rate are also crucial solutions.

This will not only increase profitability from rice cultivation but also reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Currently, water and straw management are two main factors certified by some organisations for emission reduction, which will be considered in future carbon reduction.

Optimal nutrient management for rice requires scientific solutions. However, is it feasible to scale this to farmers?

Integrated nutrient management is feasible when combined with row planting, precise seeding, and accurate nutrient application, improving rice health and reducing inputs, which farmers can easily evaluate.

With optimal nutrient management, IRRI's research has resulted in a model tailored to soil type and organic content to decide on organic versus inorganic fertiliser use and the appropriate organic content.

These results are demonstrated to farmers through economic efficiency, healthier plants, and improved soil health. Currently, farmers’ awareness is relatively good. They can easily adopt technology when it’s truly effective.

Emission-reduction rice production technology, including mechanised precision seeding, is essential for the present and future of rice production. The potential for resource use efficiency improvement through mechanisation and precision agriculture is vast.

Programmes like the Project for One Million Hectares provide an opportunity for public-private cooperation and bring many opportunities for experience exchange and future collaborations to address complex issues and expand emission-reduction production technology.

Last September, MARD conducted an initial assessment of the regions where the Project was implemented, aiming for a standardised process by 2026-2027 to reach 200,000 hectares of high-quality rice. How do you evaluate this potential?

Achieving this will require the participation and resources of multiple agencies, research institutions, both domestic and international, to establish a standard process. What is "standard" scientifically also needs to be defined, specific to each farmer, land type, region, market, and value chain. Only when this is achieved can it be considered standard.

Currently, IRRI is involved in various aspects, including developing nutrient maps, soil resource maps, greenhouse gas emission maps, etc. A robust database system is necessary to apply the current processes effectively. Where gaps exist, and farmers face difficulties, we will adjust for feasibility while still reducing emissions and improving rice quality.

With international resource mobilisation and the current operational methods, we hope that by 2026, a standard will be available for the entire Mekong Delta. However, fully optimising this remains a challenging task. VNS