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Cambodia: PM urges premium rice exports to Singapore
Prime Minister Hun Sen has urged the export of premium rice to Singapore as the country currently relies on imported agricultural products.
Cambodia is expected to become one of the countries that supply agricultural products to Singapore, the Prime Minister said during a get-together with garment workers in Pursat province on Friday.
Singapore receives millions of foreign tourists each year, requiring it to import food supplies from abroad.
“I want to see Cambodia supply premium milled rice to Singapore. I want Singaporeans and foreign tourists alike to enjoy the taste of our world-renowned rice,” he said.
Cambodia’s Phka Romduol rice won the World’s Best Rice 2022 Award at the World Rice Conference (WRC).
Cambodian premium fragrant rice won the award for the fifth — 2022 after 2018, 2014, 2013 and 2012 — of its rice industry history since participating in the annual contest, which is a very big honour for Cambodia.
Significantly, Cambodia recently started the official export of milled rice to the Philippines.
The first large-scale export was carried out by the Khmer Food Group.
Pan Sorasak, Minister of Commerce, during the inauguration ceremony of rice exports to the Philippines last week, hailed the efforts of the government, which has always been trying to find a market for Cambodian rice.
Sorasak recalled that during last year’s ASEAN Summit, the Prime Minister requested several countries to buy milled rice from Cambodia, and to invest in the development of key infrastructure rice production facilities.
Cambodia exported 278,184 tons of milled rice to 50 countries and regions during the first five months of this year, generating $191 million in revenue, according to the Cambodia Rice Federation’s report.
China was the largest market for Cambodia’s milled rice with 118,041 tons, followed by European and ASEAN countries.
Cambodian goods exports to Singapore reached $343 million in the first five months of 2023, up 508 per cent year-on-year from $56 million. The Premier also asked Cambodian Ambassadors to participate in promoting products, culture and tourism through economic diplomacy.
Source: https://www.khmertimeskh.com/501317626/pm-urges-premium-rice-exports-to-singapore/