HCM City will build a safe supply chain each for vegetables, pork and seafood, open shops selling safe agricultural produce and develop brands for safe food markets (Photo thucphamban.vn) The city’s agricultural output meets just 30 percent of its 10 million people’sdemand, and the rest is supplied by other cities and provinces.
It had carried out a pilot programme to create a safe food supply chain in2013-15, and achieved reasonable results.
But the supply of products and their variety were modest.
It is based on this effort that the city is now attempting to create theagricultural supply chain.
The programme aims at strengthening the links with provinces that supply farmproduce, improve oversight of food safety and raise producers and distributors’awareness of safeguarding consumers’ health.
One of its major tasks will be ensuring food safety through inspections andcontrol at the points of origin.
Another is improving safety at all stages in the process, from breeding andslaughter to transport, processing and distribution.
This is expected to add to the brand value of the country’s agriculturalproduce.
The programme targets establishing 20 VietGap-certified pig breeding farms inthe city and 10 in Dong Nai, Binh Duong, Ba Ria-Vung Tau and Long An provinces,each with 500 pigs.
It will encourage investment also in farms rearing youngpigs, modern slaughterhouses and trading establishments in these places.
By doing this way, the safe food chain is expected to meet30 per cent of the city’s demand for safe pork by 2020.
To supply fruits and vegetables, the programme willestablish four safe food chain models in which cooperatives and businessesparticipate.
By 2020, fruits and vegetables produced by these chains will meet 50 percent ofthe city’s needs.
In the case of seafood, the programme expects to meet more than 50 percent ofthe demand.
It targets opening 100-150 shops selling fresh farm produce such as meat,seafood, vegetables, poultry eggs and milk.
It will develop a system enabling consumers to trace the origins of productsfrom cultivation, animal breeding and seafood cooperatives.
The city plans to develop brands for wholesale and traditional markets sellingsafe farm produce by 2020.-VNA
VNA
