Genetically Modified Corn Covers About Half of Vietnam’s Corn Area, but Domestic Varieties Face Commercialization Hurdles

By 2025, genetically modified corn accounted for about 50% of Vietnam’s corn planting area, up from 1.1% when it entered production in 2015. Vietnam currently has 31 genetically modified corn varieties approved for cultivation. A representative of Vietnam’s Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection presented the figures at a crop biotechnology workshop in Hanoi on November 10.

According to an assessment by British agricultural economics firm PG Economics, the use of genetically modified corn increased Vietnam’s corn yields by about 15.2% from 2015 to 2024 and added approximately US$323.5 million to farmers’ income. Figures compiled for 2016 to 2025 show yields per unit of area were 15.2% to 30% higher than those of conventional varieties, with additional profits of about 4.34 million to 7.34 million Vietnamese dong per hectare.

Wider use has yet to lead to the commercialization of domestically developed varieties. Lê Huy Hàm, former director of Vietnam’s Agricultural Genetics Institute, said that although the country began researching genetically modified crops in the early 2000s, no variety independently developed by a domestic institution has been commercialized. He estimated that researching, evaluating and completing a single genetic modification event costs about US$136 million and can take up to 13 years, beyond the means of most domestic research institutions.

Nguyễn Văn Long, director of the Department of Science and Technology at Vietnam’s Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, said the ministry had proposed 13 crop breeding research and development tasks, but none had yet been assigned. Vietnam has established a regulatory framework for gene-edited crops separate from that for genetically modified crops: organizations or individuals developing products that contain no foreign genetic material determine their status themselves and notify the ministry, without having to seek approval under the biosafety procedures for genetically modified organisms.

Nguyễn Văn Long, director of the Department of Science and Technology at Vietnam’s Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, attends the workshop.（VietVance）

Đào Thu Vinh, head of CropLife Vietnam, said companies had received no document confirming completion of the procedure after submitting notifications for gene-edited products containing no foreign DNA, complicating subsequent variety registration. A representative of Vietnam’s Ministry of Agriculture and Environment explained that the current post-submission oversight system does not require a separate confirmation document. Companies can submit copies of their notifications to the relevant agencies to help coordinate variety registration. Industry representatives also called for clearer guidance on variety testing and approval.

Đào Thu Vinh, head of CropLife Vietnam, speaks at the workshop.（VietVance）

Source: VietVance