Phoenix Group signs strategic partnership MOU with Loc Troi Group

Dubai: Phoenix Global DMCC signed a cooperation agreement with Loc Troi Group to enhance sustainable rice production and to strengthen good economic relations between the two companies.

In a joint statement, the companies said the agreement will benefit 10,000 Viet small holder farmers enhance sustainable rice farming over 10,000 hectares of paddy field. Witnessing the ceremony were present officials and diplomats - Mr Franco Bosoni, Director Innovation Hub, DMCC and Antony Furtado of Food Trade Group, DMCC and Mr. Le Phuong, Commercial Counsellor and Head of Vietnam Trade Office in Dubai. They jointly expressed excitement and hope that consumers of UAE and Middle Eastern region would also be the beneficiary by way of imports of low chemical residue and sustainable rice which will be produced in Vietnam as a result of this partnership.

Mr. Gaurav Dhawan, Chairman and CEO of Phoenix Group said: “Phoenix has participated in many initiatives in the world, particularly in Africa, the CIS, the Middle East, India, and South East Asia to address and tackle the challenges of sustainable development in the value chain from cultivation to agribusiness. The cooperation agreement with Loc Troi Group will enhance Phoenix’s footprint in Vietnam on food safe rice production, food security, economic prosperity of Vietnamese youth, and environmental issues in mass agricultural production and meanwhile gently help Loc Troi to market Vietnamese rice globally.

The agreement also aims to help the small holder farmers in Vietnam achieve resilience to cushion the adverse effects of climate change, pest infestation, drought, floods and other calamities that are being experienced quite frequently over the past few years, the statement said.

Mr. Huynh Van Thon, Chairman of Loc Troi Group explained, “This cooperation is a major step forward with strategic importance to LTG in widening the access for farmer’s rice in the Sustainable Rice Platform program, to reach the best opportunities which will help them connect and expand consumer markets and subsequently join more rapidly into the international rice trading network. Also, it expresses the great efforts from both Phoenix and LTG in our commitment to promoting the sustainable development of Vietnam’s rice sector in particular and significantly contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals in general.”

The agreement is in line with the Sustainable Rice Platform (SRP), a global alliance of research institutes, agri-food businesses, public sector, and civil society organizations, convened by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI). The SRP works to help farmers reduce their environmental footprint while offering consumers a safer, healthier and sustainable alternative.

In Vietnam, the commercial viability of the standard has not yet been tested. There is thus an opportunity to demonstrate the business case for large companies such as Phoenix and Loc Troi, who are leading members of SRP to invest in developing sustainable rice supply chains according to the standard, a joint statement by the companies said.

Vietnam is a prominent supplier of rice to the world having exceptional competitive advantage in production. In 2017, Viet exports were at US$2.6 billion (5.9 million tons ) and this year it is expected to surpass US$3 billion (approx. 7 million tons). Rice exports from Vietnam form 17-18 per cent of the global rice trade.

Vietnamese rice production is dependent on small holders who struggle to meet the global standards of quality and food safety. Despite strident efforts by the government, current rice production practices in Viet Nam remain input-intensive to the detriment of the environment and people.

In its statement, the companies said that there is a huge opportunity to provide high quality rice with complete traceability and with reduced chemical residues which will increase the farmer’s income and their resilience to withstand the impacts of climate change. Its past growth track was based on the intensive production of low quality rice exported at a low price to Asian, African, and Middle Eastern markets based on government-to-government contracts. In 2016, the Vietnamese government launched a policy strategy for restructuring the rice sector marking the shift from food-security to food-safety, and from quantity to quality; opening new opportunities for the Vietnamese rice sector.

Through this cooperation, Phoenix and Loc Troi Group will collaborate to work together for the development of sustainable rice projects in Vietnam to be able to support the Vietnamese farmer to achieve sustainable growth.

The commercial success of this endeavor is a condition to ensure better income for farmers, safer food for consumers, and higher environmental protection. The implementation of this agreement contributes to SDG8 by supporting economic growth and high value addition, creating decent jobs, improving resource efficiency, targeting local youth employment and protecting labor rights and health & safety at work as part of the SRP indicators.

About Phoenix Group

Phoenix Group registered at the Dubai Multi Commodities Center (DMCC) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), is the world’s second largest rice trader. Engaged in the production, procurement, processing, merchandising and distribution of agricultural products, the global agricultural and food company moved 10 million tons of commodities across the world last year. The Group on its own operates 150,000 hectares of farming land in various countries across the world. Phoenix in Vietnam is a key buyer of Vietnamese rice; its business is supported by state-of-the-art infrastructure and investments in joint venture milling facilities in the Mekong Delta. A signatory of the UN Global Compact and a member of Global Agribusiness Alliance, Phoenix Group operates 10 business verticals in 22 countries from its central operations hub in Dubai. According to the UN Compact, a sustainable global food and agriculture system would create new economic value of more than US$2 trillion by 2030.

About Loc Troi Group

Loc Troi Group- formerly An Giang Plant Protection Joint Stock Company (AGPPS), was established in 1993 and is a leading agricultural manufacturer and service supplier in Vietnam market and succeed on developing sustainable rice value chain to enhance the position of rice farmers and Vietnamese rice.Loc Troi was recognized by Vietnam government with the title of “Hero of Labor” for the outstanding achievements in its production and social activities (Loc Troi raised its investment capital to as much as 57 times within 6 years of operation). Having gone hand in hand with farmer for more than two decades, Loc Troi officially launched its “To the Fields with Farmers” campaign, which created a quantum leap in making modern cultivation techniques available to farmers nationwide. Number of agricultural engineers has soared to 1,300, which recorded the biggest team in Vietnam. Loc Troi also launched the first Large-scales paddy fields throughout the Mekong Delta region and the first rice value chain and established Agricultural Research Center (the first large-scale agriculture research center owned by a private company). Since 2016, Loc Loc Group has known the first and only company to successfully implement the rice SRP program in Vietnam. According to program results, Loc Troi worked closely with IFC, IRRI and SRP, expanding the scope of application of SRP indicators to 4000 farmers in the rice value chain. As a result, the Group has officially raised its rice material area into a new step on improvement the capacity of SRP implementation and management and promote strongly on the roadmap of Vietnamese rice’s branding.

Contact information (for reference only, not to be printed):

Sanjay Sethi (Director Sustainability, Phoenix Group),

Phoenix Global DMCC, 44^th Floor, Mazaya Business Avenue, Tower AA1, Jumeirah Lakes Towers

Dubai. Email: sanjay.sethi@pclworld.net, Cell: +971563124677

Am Nguyen Thi (Ms.) (Director of Communications and Public Affairs)

Loc Troi Group, 72 Nguyen Co Thach Street, District 2,

HCMC 700000, Vietnam, E: am.t.nguyen@loctroi.vn ; M: +84918397008

© Press Release 2018