Vietnamese distribution channels prioritise Vietnamese agricultural products
The Son La Province and Saigon Co.op have held a ceremony to mark the man hau’s (plum) entry into the latter’s distribution system.
Vo Tran Ngoc, Saigon Co.op’s Sales Director, said that Saigon Co.op plans to distribute 100 tonnes of the plums, a unique fruit grown in the northern province, from Moc Chau and Yen Chau districts, at Co.opmart, Co.opXtra, Co. op Food, and Finelife in 2024. Products will have the best preferential prices on the market combined with product trial and display activities at 130 Co.opmart and Co.opXtra supermarkets.
Not only with plums, Saigon Co.op’s distribution system has actively consumed Vietnamese agricultural products.
Along with Saigon Co.op, BigGreen’s clean food system is a purely Vietnamese distribution channel that actively consumes Vietnamese products. Nguyen Tien Hung, Director of BigGreen Vietnam Clean Food Co., Ltd., shared that the current rate of total OCOP products sold in the BigGreen system is about 60-65%. The proportion of Vietnamese products at BigGreen is up to approximately 100%.
According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, over recent years in response to the 'Vietnamese people prioritise using Vietnamese goods' campaign, distribution channels have started consuming Vietnamese goods, especially Vietnamese agricultural products. Therefore, in recent years, the situation of "good harvest – low prices” for agricultural products during the harvest season has decreased.
Currently, the proportion of Vietnamese agricultural products in distribution channels accounts for over 80%. For pure Vietnamese distribution channels, such as Saigon Co.op, Tu Son supermarket, Hapro, and Winmart, the proportion of Vietnamese goods is over 90%, especially Vietnamese agricultural products accounting for over 95%.
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At Winmart supermarket, the proportion of Vietnamese goods is approximately 95%. |
Recently, the Ministry of Industry and Trade has promoted connecting the supply and demand of Vietnamese products, including bringing Vietnamese agricultural products into the distribution system.
Removing bottlenecks of Vietnamese agricultural products
Although there have been many efforts to connect Vietnamese goods to distribution channels, according to experts, Vietnamese agricultural products still have many limitations.
Tran Hoang - Director of Co.opmart Victoria Hanoi Supermarket, shared that the first limitation is the issue of goods source and output. The current market demand for specialty products and safe agricultural products is very high. However, because most manufacturers are small-scale producers, the supply sometimes cannot meet increased demand.
Second is the transportation issue. For cooperatives or manufacturers in rural and mountainous areas, the process of transporting goods to delivery points of the distribution system is still quite difficult.
Agricultural products need high-standard preservation conditions, while cooperatives and small-scale manufacturers cannot invest in refrigerated vehicles, cold storage and transportation systems.
According to agricultural expert Hoang Trong Thuy, the State needs to support cooperatives and localities to invest in cold storage, to maintain product quality when brought to supermarkets. Accordingly, agricultural products not only improve competitiveness but also enhance the competitiveness of Vietnamese distribution channels with foreign distribution channels.
