Australia agrotech RLF invests $2 mln in Vietnam agricultural distributor

Australia’s RLF AgTech Ltd., an agriculture-technology (agrotech) business, will invest AUD3.3 million ($2.14 million) in Kona Crop Science, a Ho Chi Minh City-based distributor of agricultural products, in order to reach the Vietnamese market.

In an announcement Thursday, RLF said under the five-year agreement, RLF can access Kona’s distribution network in Vietnam with over 400 retailers, helping the Australian business reach a large customer base and further penetrate the market.

"RLF is committed to offering innovative agricultural solutions to farms in Vietnam and in Southeast Asia, in a move to advance farming methods and improve crop yields and efficiency," the company said.

"RLF, a producer of high-quality plant nutrition products, and Kona, a business of pesticides and fertilizers, eye to bring quality, safe, and sustainable solutions to assist Vietnamese farmers become more progressive," it added.

Vietnam’s agriculture-forestry-fisheries recorded a growth of 2.52% in the first quarter of this year, below the country’s overall GDP growth of 3.32% in the period, according to the General Statistics Office. The sector earned an export revenue of $11.19 billion in the first quarter, down 14.4% year-on-year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Major export products were rice with an export revenue of $952 million, vegetables-fruits with $935 million, cashew with $708 million, and others. China was the biggest market with $2.4 billion, followed by the U.S. with $2.04 billion, Japan with $936 million, and South Korea with $528 million, the ministry added.