Seoul (VNA) – GS25, a convenience store chain operated by the Republic of Korea's GS Retail, said on August 10 that it is running a dedicated banana farm in Vietnam to secure consistent quality and smooth supply.
Seoul Economic Daily reported that the designated farm is a Del Monte banana farm in Tay Ninh province, about 50 kilometres from Ho Chi Minh City. The farm produces "Del Monte Fresh Week Bananas", sold in bunches of three to five.
Through the arrangement, GS25 has set up a system to receive a steady monthly supply of more than 200,000 packs at consistent quality. The retail price is 1,990 KRW (1.4 USD), among the lowest in the industry.
Ahead of designating the farm, GS25 began selling products from the site in March. Cumulative sales reached about 700 million KRW by the end of last month, and the steady consumer demand led the company to formally designate the farm. GS25 plans to sell the designated farm's bananas in limited runs during its monthly "Fresh Week" promotional events.
GS25 expects the dedicated overseas banana farm to benefit not only consumers but also store owners' operating efficiency. The farm is equipped with a separate sorting and packaging system that produces the small-package products suited to convenience store sales. Because the individual packaging can be completed locally, stores can order by the unit based on their own sales volumes from the ordering stage, instead of the previous box-based supply method. The company expects this to reduce stores' inventory burden and improve logistics and operating efficiency.
GS25’s establishment of a dedicated banana production base in Vietnam reflects a growing trend among Korean retailers to strengthen control over their supply chains, from cultivation and sorting to packaging and distribution. The model not only helps ensure stable supplies and consistent quality, but also reduces logistics costs, enhancing the price competitiveness of fresh food products in the Korean market./.
