4:38:59 PM | 3/9/2008
Southern Binh Phuoc province will invest VND140 billion in a project to develop cocoa cultivation, the Vietnam News Agency reported.
Phan Van Hoang, director of the provincial agricultural extension center said the four- year project, starting from 2009, will grow 6,000 hectares of cocoa in cashew garden in seven districts.
To prepare for the project, the center has germinated 550,000 cocoa trees on five hectares.
Pham Hong Duc Phuoc, deputy chief of the Cocoa Development Coordinating Committee of Vietnam said Binh Phuoc land is very suitable for the growth of cocoa.
The province now has more than 1,200 hectares of cocoa which are grown at cashew and fruit orchards. Bu Dang district is the largest cocoa growing area in the province, with around 600 hectares and average productivity of 80-100 kilograms per hectare.
Vietnam had 10,000 hectares under cocoa cultivation as of June 2008. The country targeted to expand the area to 60,000 hectares by 2015. (Vietnam & World Economy)
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