Feeding frenzy in Vietnam
Frenzied competition in Vietnam's animal-feed market
is a clear sign that local farmers are suffering from lower
incomes this year. A slump in prices for rice, chicken
and pork has left farmers scrambling for cheaper feed
for their hogs and chickens--and left a growing number
of foreign and local feed companies scrapping for a
share of the market. Farmers "have to manage to feed
themselves first and then think about their livestock. It
has left the animal-feed market very distressed," says
Nguyen Thi Dung of the Vietnamese firm Phap Viet.
This has led to some novel promotions. Phap Viet, for
example, has tried to lure farmers with handouts of
monosodium glutamate seasoning, along with
notebooks, T-shirts and caps. Meanwhile, the
American Feed Company, a U.S. firm, has offered
fridges to motivate top-performing sales agents. The
market has grown more crowded than a chicken coop:
currently 127 local firms and 10 foreign firms from
France, Taiwan, South Korea, the U.S. and China are
vying for business, compared to just 40 local firms and
three foreign companies five years ago, say industry
executives. Profits are vanishing as companies shovel
out feed below cost, while quality has become a major
concern, they add.
The Far Eastern Economic Review - November 29, 2001.
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