Food reserves kept sufficient to cater for emergencies: Authority

ABO/NDO- The General Department of State Reserves (GDSR) said it has proactively reviewed and balanced the national food reserves to keep the inventory at a reasonable level to serve the regulated tasks, quickly and effectively respond to every unexpected or urgent circumstance, and prevent food shortages during between-crop periods, natural disasters, and epidemics.

The GDSR noted it has kept a close watch on market fluctuations and taken into account the climate change, natural disaster, and epidemic situations to meet localities’ demand and propose the Prime Minister supplement the 2023 food reserve plan when necessary to guarantee food security.

It has also built a reserve plan for 2024 with a reasonable inventory level to ready supply for food distribution ordered by competent authorities and for market stabilisation when needed.

Packaging rice for export at the factory of the Trung An Hi-Tech Farming JSC in Thot Not district, the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho (Photo: VNA).

Besides, the GDSR is exerting efforts to reach the food reserve targets set by the PM. Food stockpiling and allocation are also being governed in a flexible and reality-matching manner to ensure efficient use of the national reserves, it went on.

Particularly, facing strong fluctuations in food supply, demand and prices, the GDSR issued a document on August 18 requesting regional departments of state reserves nationwide to quickly complete the assigned reserve plans for 2023, it added.

In a directive released on August 5, the PM ordered firmly guaranteeing the national food security and promoting sustainable rice production and export in the current context to ensure the national food reserves are sufficient to cater for unexpected and urgent situations during disasters and epidemics, ensure social security, and stabilise people’s life.

(Source: NDO)