Enterprises in the food industry should focus more on improvingproduction technologies to create products with added value, delegatessaid at a conference in Ho Chi Minh City on November 26.
TaHoang Linh, Deputy General Director of the Vietnam Trade PromotionAgency, said Vietnam's varied geographic and climatic conditions enabledit to grow a diverse range of agricultural crops.
The productsnot only meet domestic demand but also exports, Linh said, adding thatVietnam is the world's largest exporter of many farm produce such ascashew nuts, coffee, rice, tea and seafood.
However, export revenue remains low since most products were exported as raw materials with very little processing.
DamNgoc Nam, Deputy Head of the Department of Processing and Trade forAgro-forestry-Fisheries Products and Salt Production, agreed, sayingthat the deep processing rate in the cashew sector (salted cashews,fried and spicy cashews, mixed nuts, cashew confectionery), forinstance, is modest, with only 6 percent.
The ratio is about 10 percent for fruits and coffee sectors, he said.
Althoughenterprises involved in agricultural, forestry and fisheries productionhave invested significantly in modern technologies and equipments, alarge number of firms have not invested in equipment to enhance productvalue, mostly because of financial difficulties, he said.
Ly KimChi, Chairwoman of Food and Foodstuff Association of HCM City, saidlocal firms should invest more in upgrading production machinery,strengthen market research, and diversify products to fit the tastes andhabits of each market and customers.
Building brands, enhancingtrade promotion, and expanding distribution systems to increase salesboth at home and abroad are also very important, she said.
ReindertDekker, an expert at the Netherlands' Centre for the Promotion ofImports from Developing Countries (CBI), said producers shoulddifferentiate products through packaging and ingredients, and diversifytheir products to meet different groups of customers as well as buildbrands for their goods.
Convenient packaging has become a growingtrend as consumers' daily schedules have become busier, he said, addingthat the global demand for natural ingredients would remain strong andnot just in traditional markets. Producers need to pay attention tothat, he said.
In addition, development of support industries tocater to the development of the processing industry is needed to improvepromotions, Nam said.
Demand for clean foodstuff and deeply processed products is increasing both at home and abroad, Chi said.
With the world population expected to reach 8.2 billion in 2030, it will be a major challenge to meet food and foodstuff needs.
Theinternational conference on Vietnam's food industry was organised bythe Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in collaboration withthe Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency and the Netherlands' CBI.-VNA
TaHoang Linh, Deputy General Director of the Vietnam Trade PromotionAgency, said Vietnam's varied geographic and climatic conditions enabledit to grow a diverse range of agricultural crops.
The productsnot only meet domestic demand but also exports, Linh said, adding thatVietnam is the world's largest exporter of many farm produce such ascashew nuts, coffee, rice, tea and seafood.
However, export revenue remains low since most products were exported as raw materials with very little processing.
DamNgoc Nam, Deputy Head of the Department of Processing and Trade forAgro-forestry-Fisheries Products and Salt Production, agreed, sayingthat the deep processing rate in the cashew sector (salted cashews,fried and spicy cashews, mixed nuts, cashew confectionery), forinstance, is modest, with only 6 percent.
The ratio is about 10 percent for fruits and coffee sectors, he said.
Althoughenterprises involved in agricultural, forestry and fisheries productionhave invested significantly in modern technologies and equipments, alarge number of firms have not invested in equipment to enhance productvalue, mostly because of financial difficulties, he said.
Ly KimChi, Chairwoman of Food and Foodstuff Association of HCM City, saidlocal firms should invest more in upgrading production machinery,strengthen market research, and diversify products to fit the tastes andhabits of each market and customers.
Building brands, enhancingtrade promotion, and expanding distribution systems to increase salesboth at home and abroad are also very important, she said.
ReindertDekker, an expert at the Netherlands' Centre for the Promotion ofImports from Developing Countries (CBI), said producers shoulddifferentiate products through packaging and ingredients, and diversifytheir products to meet different groups of customers as well as buildbrands for their goods.
Convenient packaging has become a growingtrend as consumers' daily schedules have become busier, he said, addingthat the global demand for natural ingredients would remain strong andnot just in traditional markets. Producers need to pay attention tothat, he said.
In addition, development of support industries tocater to the development of the processing industry is needed to improvepromotions, Nam said.
Demand for clean foodstuff and deeply processed products is increasing both at home and abroad, Chi said.
With the world population expected to reach 8.2 billion in 2030, it will be a major challenge to meet food and foodstuff needs.
Theinternational conference on Vietnam's food industry was organised bythe Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in collaboration withthe Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency and the Netherlands' CBI.-VNA
