Authorities under the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment have released two new protocols for high-quality rice production.
Specifically, the Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection introduced the High-Quality, Low-Emission Rice Production Protocol for the Mekong Delta, while the Institute of Agricultural Environment unveiled the Measurement, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) Protocol for high-quality, low-emission rice cultivation in the region.
These two protocols are part of the national scheme “Sustainable Development of One Million Hectares of High-Quality, Low-Emission Rice Linked to Green Growth in the Mekong Delta by 2030”.
The high-quality rice production protocol will be piloted during the 2025-2026 winter-spring crop in the Mekong Delta region. Photo: Le Hoang Vu.They will be piloted during the 2025-2026 winter-spring crop, with plans for full regional adoption from 2027. The protocols also include the development of tools to monitor and evaluate both emission-reduction performance and economic benefits for farmers.
The High-Quality, Low-Emission Rice Production Protocol provides comprehensive guidance—from varietal selection, land preparation, sowing, fertilization, water management, and pest control to harvesting, storage, and market linkage. Its aim is to reduce emissions, lower production costs, and improve yields and grain quality.
The MRV protocol establishes a system for measuring, reporting, and verifying greenhouse gas reductions in rice farming, forming the basis for certification and validation of agricultural carbon credits.
The MRV protocol was developed through close collaboration among research institutes, universities, local authorities, and international experts, using extensive field data from pilot sites. This marks the first time Viet Nam has issued an MRV protocol for the rice sector.
Deputy Minister Tran Thanh Nam emphasized that releasing the MRV protocol sends a strong message to the international community: Viet Nam is making concrete progress toward its COP26 commitments, with a measurement and verification system aligned with international standards and grounded in real-world data. Completing these sustainable production and MRV protocols will provide the legal foundation for nationwide implementation in the coming years.
According to the Ministry, adopting these two protocols is not merely a technical requirement but the starting point for transforming Viet Nam’s rice sector - from traditional production to a green, smart, circular, and low-emission model. The Ministry calls on provinces, enterprises, cooperatives, and farmers to work together to turn these protocols into new standards for rice production across the Mekong Delta.