Hanoi (VNA) –♔ The Vietnam Dairy Products JSC (Vinamilk) and its member company Vietnam Livestock Corporation JSC (Vilico) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Japan’s Sojitz Corporation and the Vinh Phuc People's Committee on the investment and development of a 500-million-USD beef cattle project in Vietnam’s northern province of Vinh Phuc.

The exchange of the pact between the sides took place at the Vietnam - Japan investment promotion conference on November 25 in Tokyo under the witness of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, who was paying an official visit to Japan. The entire project, worth nearly half a billion USD, has the highest value among agricultural production projects signed within the framework of the PM's working trip to promote economic cooperation between Vietnamese and Japanese businesses. Per the MoU, a joint venture investment in beef production-processing-distribution establishments in Vietnam will be set up, serving the domestic market and export. In the next stages, there will be other protein-based products with deep processing technology and the scale of cooperation is expected to reach 500 million USD. The first phase of the project is scheduled to come into operation in 2023 with a closed processing facility equipped with modern technology and a capacity of approximately 30,000 beef cattle a year. The cooperation scale between investors is approximately 3 trillion VND (132.19 million USD), of which the total investment in Vinh Phuc reaches 1.67 trillion VND. At the signing ceremony of the MoU on November 24, Hoang Thi Thuy Lan, Secretary of the Party Committee of Vinh Phuc, said the project will help promote cooperation in agricultural development between Vietnam and Japan in general as well as between Vinh Phuc and Japanese enterprises in particular. The project will cross many aspects, from technical collaboration, research and infrastructure development to joint ventures and direct investment in high-tech agriculture. With the potential and existing advantages of Vinh Phuc, the project's goal is in line with its agricultural development strategy in the new period, creating a strong boost to the province's agriculture and livestock industry. In 2021, Sojitz and Vilico sealed a cooperation agreement and established a joint venture – the Japan Vietnam Livestock Co., Ltd. – to carry out animal husbandry and processing, import and distribute beef products in the Vietnamese market. The joint venture saw Vilico owning 51 percent and Sojitz 49 percent of its capital. Regarding the project, Trinh Quoc Dung, General Director of Vilico, said the sides involved are suitable partners to promote each other's strengths. Japan’s advanced technology and experience combined with Vinamilk's strengths in resources and markets will create superior and high-quality products at reasonable prices to serve and satisfy the growing needs of consumers, he added. Meanwhile, a representative of Sojitz affirmed that through the establishment of this joint venture, the corporation hopes to provide safe and reliable high quality beef products to the Vietnamese market and to export Vietnamese beef products to potential markets in the future./.