Organic rice production and commercialisation potential of agricultural cooperatives in Thua Thien - Hue province

Abstract

Production and consumption of organic products is a global trend and increasingly popular in Vietnam. Agricultural cooperatives are considered a key agent in the mass production and commercialisation of organic rice. This study applied the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) method to evaluate the organic rice production and commercialisation potential of 33 prominent rice cooperatives in Thua Thien - Hue province. The results found seven criteria of potential organic rice cooperatives, including (1) relationship with external partners, (2) resources of the cooperative, (3) capacity of the board of directors, (4) market accessibility, (5) reputation of the board of directors with farmers (6) farmers’ perception, and (7) farmers’ capacity. The research ranked five levels of cooperatives: one very high potential cooperative, eight high potential cooperatives, twelve moderate potential cooperatives; twelve low potential cooperatives, and no very low potential cooperative in the study region. Planning production areas and supporting cooperatives to establish linkages are critical policies for developing organic rice in Thua Thien - Hue province.