As part of the official trip by Party General Secretary and President To Lam and the high-level Vietnamese delegation from September 20 to 25, 2026, to attend the High-level General Debate of the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly, conduct bilateral activities in the U.S., and pay a state visit to Canada, Minister of Agriculture and Environment Trinh Viet Hung joined the delegation and engaged in activities to promote cooperation with U.S. and Canadian partners in agriculture, environment, and agricultural trade.
Party General Secretary and President To Lam introduces members of the Vietnamese high-level delegation to Governor General of Canada Louise Arbour. Photo: Thong Nhat/VNA.On September 21, 2026, at the World Economic Forum (WEF) headquarters in New York, Minister of Agriculture and Environment Trinh Viet Hung met with Tania Strauss, a member of the WEF Executive Committee, to discuss opportunities to strengthen cooperation in developing green and circular agriculture, as well as high-quality, low-emission value chains that meet the standards of major markets such as the United States, the European Union, and Japan.
Minister of Agriculture and Environment Trinh Viet Hung meets with Tania Strauss, a member of the WEF Executive Committee, to discuss opportunities to promote cooperation in developing green and circular agriculture and high-quality, low-emission value chains. Photo: Hoai Nam.Regarding the 1-million-hectare high-quality, low-emission rice program, the Minister said that one-third of the targeted area has been completed to date, delivering positive results in reducing production costs, increasing farmers’ incomes, saving water, and cutting emissions in rice production. The program also contributes to making use of rice straw and preventing additional emissions. In the coming period, the program will continue to be expanded across the Mekong Delta, with a focus on circular economy models for rice straw management, including renewable energy production.
For coffee, Vietnam is implementing measures to meet and comply with the EUDR, with a view to maintaining access to the EU market and expanding into other markets.
Tania Strauss spoke highly of the cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development since 2010 and expressed her desire to continue working with the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment. WEF is ready to help connect the Government, businesses, and international partners, and invited Vietnam to join the First Movers Coalition for Food.
Minister Trinh Viet Hung thanked WEF for its continued support and expressed confidence that Vietnam - WEF cooperation would continue to develop in a substantive and effective manner, contributing to the green transition and sustainable development.
On September 24, 2026 (Canada time), in Ottawa, Minister Trinh Viet Hung signed two memoranda of understanding with Canadian partners, creating an additional framework to advance areas of mutual interest.
The Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment of Vietnam and the Canadian Ministry of Environment on strengthening environmental cooperation focuses on climate change adaptation, methane emission reduction, carbon pricing, plastic pollution and the circular economy, nature and biodiversity conservation, and air, land, and water pollution control.
Party General Secretary and President To Lam and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney witness the signing of cooperation documents between the two countries. Photo: Thong Nhat/VNA.The two sides also seek to promote the application of artificial intelligence, big data, and digital technologies in environmental monitoring and forecasting, while agreeing to maintain annual bilateral consultations to review and advance specific cooperation activities.
The MoU between the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment of Vietnam and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) on cooperation in food safety and sanitary and phytosanitary measures aims to strengthen technical relations and establish coordination mechanisms to prevent and address issues that could affect bilateral agricultural trade.
Accordingly, the two sides will enhance information exchange and technical discussions, coordinate in addressing trade-related issues, and cooperate on electronic export certification, training, expert exchanges, and the sharing of experience in management, control, and risk assessment.
Vietnam and Canada have a favorable foundation for expanding cooperation in agriculture, as the product structures of the two countries are complementary, creating room for growth in trade, investment, science and technology, and safe and sustainable food supply chains.
Amid growing demand for the green transition, climate change response, and environmental governance, the two memoranda signed on this occasion are expected to provide further impetus for deeper cooperation between the two countries’ specialized agencies, gradually leading to the development of specific programs and activities in the coming period.