Tapioca market: supply does not meet demand
In some areas such as Yen Bai materials, or some central provinces, the price of fresh cassava also increased dramatically. About 1 month ago, the price of fresh cassava about 800 thousand dong / ton, has now increased to over 1 million / ton. There are many places worth nearly 1.2-1.3 million / tons of cassava that is becoming very effective for hilly lands, steep, difficult terrain for the cultivation of other crops.
The cause of the "fever" is in the Chinese market due to strong sales of starch products in Vietnam. According to some manufacturers, the 2nd reason is because this year should profit slowed harvest 1 month. Some places like Van Yen - Yen Bai had 3 months now so it does not rain the dry land, very difficult to harvest. If it rains, the soft soil, a day can spit is 3-4 quintals uprooting cassava are now only 2 kg. Not to mention the hard dry ground, spit anywhere broken bulbs with hoes to dig there, so very slow harvest also causes lack of fresh cassava.
Although cassava is crowned, the producer of starch and cassava growers are beneficial, but the fluctuation of this item is very difficult to predict. In late 2008 - early 2009, thousands of tons of starch piled in Lang Son border gate congestion due to exports to the Chinese market. 2008 Department cassava, cassava market also witnessed a gloomy atmosphere as fresh cassava price is only about 400-450 VND / kg, but still unsold. Some of the thousands of hectares of cassava material to harvest, but farmers abandoned on a hill so there is not enough money selling the care and handling.
Currently, across the country have formed many areas throughout cassava planting material from the North (Yen Bai, Phu Tho) to Central (Nghe An, Binh Dinh) and extends into several central provinces - Highland. Some businesses have invested to Laos to expand the raw materials for the processing industry for starch. However, these enterprises as JSC Quang Ngai Agricultural Products and Foodstuff (APFCO) found starch export market to Europe is very rare. The majority of enterprises still rely on China as the main market and the risk incurred by the vagaries of the market. According to Chi Ma border customs, about 300-500 tonnes per day cassava starch exported to China and 90% of Vietnam's cassava starch exported to China.
Currently there are over 500,000 hectares of cassava with output of 8 million tons. Nationwide there are 60 processing plants cassava industrial scale with a total processing capacity of more than half a million tonnes per year of cassava starch. Up till the end of 11/2009 about 3 million tonnes of cassava and starch were exported with a total value of nearly $ 500 million. In 2009, while many commodities and exports slow sharply in value, tapioca again crowned with exports rising more than 4 times in volume and turnover increased by 3 times. The main export markets are China, accounting for over 90% of turnover. Followed by South Korea accounted for 5.5%; Taiwan 2%; Europe (1.7%) and a very small portion began to be Japanese ...
China now imports about 6 million tonnes of cassava per year and is the third-largest ethanol producer in the world, behind the US and Brazil. Many Chinese local mandatory ethanol-blended gasoline used in cars. Especially, Guangxi, where 70% of China's cassava production with 7 million tons / year. Therefore, China's consumer market for cassava and cassava starch are strong.
