Circular Aquaculture Innovation/Vietnam/2025
The enabling environment for upscaling integrated rice–shrimp systems in the Mekong River Delta of Vietnam
Peer-Reviewed
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This 2025 scientific article in Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems analyses the enabling environment for upscaling integrated rice-shrimp (IRS) systems in the Mekong River Delta of Viet Nam. In IRS systems, farmers alternate rice cultivation in the wet season with shrimp farming in the dry season, when salinity rises, making productive use of changing conditions. The study uses stakeholder consultation and validation to identify the drivers that support wider adoption and the barriers that hold it back, including technical, economic, institutional, infrastructural and market factors. It highlights evidence that IRS systems can deliver lower greenhouse gas emissions, reduced chemical use and less waste compared with intensive two-crop rice or extensive shrimp farming, while also enhancing climate resilience in salinity-affected areas. The findings point to the policies, investments and support services needed to scale the system, such as water-management infrastructure, access to quality seed, technical training and market incentives for sustainably produced rice and shrimp. Classed as direct evidence under Circular Economy and Resource Efficiency, the article provides scaling and policy evidence for integrated production systems. It is useful for policymakers in Viet Nam, development partners and researchers interested in promoting climate-smart, low-impact integrated systems in delta environments.
Additional Details
- Author(s)
- Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems
- Type
- Scientific article
- Aquaculture / Fisheries Dimension
- Integrated rice–shrimp (IRS) systems
- Relevance to Climate Aquaculture
- Direct
- Thematic Area
- Circular Economy & Resource Efficiency
- Climate Issue
- Climate resilience; greenhouse-gas emissions; chemical and waste reduction
- Adaptation / Key Contribution
- Stakeholder-validated drivers and barriers to scaling IRS; lower emissions, chemical use and waste than two-crop rice or extensive shrimp
- How to Use / Notes
- Scaling and policy evidence for integrated production systems