Vietnam to increase soybean imports 15% in 2018/19: USDA

Vietnam imports of soybean are set to increase 15% to 1.9 million mt in the next marketing year as a changing diet spurs strong demand for feed in the livestock and aquaculture sectors and pushes crushing rates up, according to the USDA.

The figures are up from the 2017/18 marketing year imports of 1.65 million mt.

Vietnam has suffered several years of poor yields in soybeans, which has led to a reduction in the planted area as farmers have switched to more profitable crops.

Soybean meal imports are also set to rise to 5.2 million mt, the USDA said.