HCM City’s farm production shoots upThe average production value per hectare of agricultural land in Ho Chi Minh City has increased year after year even as the area shrank, according to the municipal Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. Vegetables bring revenues of 1-1.4 billion VND per hectare annually; orchids, around 2 billion VND; dairy cows (at a scale of 20 head per household), 800 million VND; shrimp, 2.7-3 billion VND per hectare; and ornamental fish, 10-12 billion VND per hectare. According to the department, vegetables were grown on a total of 17,270ha, 12.4 percent up from 2016, with the output rising 14.3 percent to more than 419,410 tonnes. The city exported 18.2 million ornamental fishes for 20 million USD, a year-on-year increase of 21.2 percent, it said. This year, the farm sector would strive to raise average production per hectare to 500 million VND and grow agro-forestry and fisheries by 6 percent, the department said.