Hanoi and localities promote supply of safe farm products

Hanoi's agriculture sector has coordinated with provinces and cities across the country to boost the supply of safe agricultural products, according to the city's Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD).

Nguyen Thi Thu Hang, Director of the Hanoi Sub-Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Quality Control under DARD, said they have worked with 43 provinces and cities across the country to develop around a thousand safe agricultural product consumption chains, providing enough raw materials for processing and export activities.

"Hanoi currently has about 13,500 agricultural, forestry and fishery production and trading enterprises. The city's agricultural authorities have been regularly monitoring food quality," Hang said.

As a company that supplies a large amount of seafood to Hanoi, Pham Van Tinh, Director of Cuong Thinh Services Co., Ltd (in the northern province of Hoa Binh) told The Hanoi Times that to sell its products to supermarkets and restaurants in the capital, the company has invested in building a supply chain of Da River fish products that meet Vietnamese Good Agricultural Practices (VietGap) standards.

Safe agricultural products from the northern province of Hoa Binh are displayed at the Biggreen Vietnam Clean Food Company Limited store in Hanoi's Nam Tu Liem District. Photo: Lam Nguyen

"Thanks to the certified brand for Da River fish and shrimp products, the company supplies about 500-600 tons of all kinds of fish to the Hanoi market every year," Tinh said.

According to Vuong Dac Hung, Deputy Director of the Hoa Binh Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Hanoi and Hoa Binh have worked together to develop 65 safe food supply chains.

"The provincial authority also supports cooperatives and businesses in promoting trade in Hanoi. As a result, many key products of Hoa Binh Province have been sold in supermarkets and convenience stores in the capital, including Da River fish, Cao Phong orange, Tan Lac red grapefruit, Viba banana, Luong Son organic vegetables, Lac Thuy chicken, and others," the official told The Hanoi Times.

Specifically, Hoa Binh provides the Hanoi market with more than 1,600 tons of Da River fish per year, more than 18,000 tons of fruit per year, and thousands of tons of vegetables and seafood. "Hoa Binh's agricultural products are strictly controlled from production to processing," Hung added.

Le Thi Hoai Thu, owner of Hai Suong Clean Food Store in Hanoi's Ha Dong district, said: "On average, our store buys and sells a total of more than 20 kilograms of organic vegetables, 1.5-200 kilograms of organic pork from cooperatives in Hoa Binh Province every month. I feel so happy because most of our customers said they were satisfied with the quality of the products.

Besides Hoa Binh, some provinces and cities have developed chains to supply Hanoi, such as Son La with 144 chains, Lao Cai with 53, Hung Yen with 41, Dong Thap with 28, Lam Dong with 15, Tien Giang with 20, and others.  

An event to promote Son La agricultural products at Big C Thang Long supermarket in Hanoi. Photo: Nguyen Hoi/The Hanoi Times

Cam Thi Phong, Deputy Director of Son La's Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said the province currently has 242 supply chains of safe agricultural, forestry, and fishery products, 84 of which have provided about 7,200 tons of vegetables and fruits and 290 tons of processed food for Hanoi's consumers.

"Coordination between the province and Hanoi has helped Son La's cooperatives find a stable consumer market and adjust their production plans to meet market demand," Phong said.

Nguyen Minh Hieu, Director of Tien Giang's Department of Agro-Forestry-Fisheries Quality Management, told the Vietnam Government Portal (VGP) that the province and Hanoi have also set up four chains of agricultural products, including dragon fruit, mango, durian, and star apple. "The supply to the capital's market is estimated at 1,200 tons per month," Hieu said.

"Stringent quality control of agricultural and food products is always a priority for provincial and city governments to strengthen coordination to build a more secure food supply chain," said Nguyen Thi Thu Hang, Director of the Hanoi Sub-Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Quality Control under DARD.

Food safety inspectors check agricultural products at a local grocery in Hanoi. Photo: The Hanoi Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Acting Director of the Hanoi Department of Industry and Trade Tran Thi Phuong Lan said that to stabilize the market, promote the use of agricultural products with quality assurance and clear origin for consumption in the local distribution system, Hanoi has launched many activities to connect regions and link supply and demand of goods with provinces and cities.

In the first four months of 2024, the city supported enterprises in participating in events, trade activities, trade promotion in Hanoi and other provinces, and distribution channels, resulting in the supply of 150,000 tons of goods to Hanoi.

She added that functional agencies have intensified inspection of compliance with the law on food safety by production and business establishments, and strictly dealt with violations to ensure the interests of genuine producers and consumers.

Every year in the third quarter, the Hanoi Promotion Agency (HPA) usually launches a trade promotion week for agricultural products from Hanoi and other provinces and cities to promote the consumption of safe agricultural products from Hanoi and the provinces nationwide, as well as to connect provincial and city producers with distribution channels in the capital, the deputy director said.

She stressed that the event is always expected to be a good opportunity for enterprises to widely introduce their brands and products, contributing to the promotion of branded, quality, and typical products of Hanoi, provinces, and cities nationwide, and effectively implementing the "Vietnamese people give priority to using Vietnamese goods" campaign.