Sustainable and Smart Agricultural Supply Chain Development in Mekong Countries

Agriculture sector is the backbone of and a key contributor to the economies in all counties of the world. The world produces sufficient food to meet the demand of its current population of 7 billion. In the Mekong countries namely Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam (CLMTV), agriculture and food industry have been one of the fast-growing industries. Over 60% of the population of 340 million in the Mekong region are engaged in small-scale agriculture. The countries have witnessed the average annual GDP growth of 7.5% GDP since 1992. They also witnessed annual urbanization growth of 3%. High-value agriculture production, in particular horticultural crops (fruit and vegetables), has played a significant role in supporting increased incomes and the resiliency of smallholder producers.

Such significant economic growth and urbanization have impacted the way consumers in these countries relate to agriculture and food production practice and which has consequently resulted in the growth of the industry. Over 1.3 billion tons of food is lost or wasted globally every year . The highest levels of food loss and waste occur in perishable crops such as fruits and vegetables and roots and tubers. Post-harvest losses in fruits and vegetables across Asia and the Pacific region may be as high as 50 percent, while for rice, they vary between 12 and 37 percent. With growing incomes and changing food consumption habits in urban centres of Asian countries, food waste is an emerging issue. On average, approximately 11 kg of food per capita per year is wasted in developing Asian countries, while an estimated 80 kg of food per capita per year is wasted in developed Asian countries. Food losses and food waste not only have adverse impacts on the region’s food security, but also negatively impact on the environment, labour, land, water and other resources used in food production. Read more...