From the meaning of “rescue” farmers during the COVID-19 pandemic, selling Vietnamese agricultural products via e-commerce platforms has become an opportunity to expand the market without spending much cost through traders.
This June, when the fruit season begins, the stimulation of Vietnamese agricultural products through e-commerce platforms is more important. It helps farmers quickly consume their products and bring fresh fruits to consumers conveniently.
CROSS-BORDER VIETNAMESE AGRICULTURAL PRODUCT TRADE
Vietnamese agricultural products are available on the Alibaba website. (Photo: Internet)
Mr. Le Dinh Tu, Director of Binh Son Agricultural and Forestry Cooperative (Trieu Son district, Thanh Hoa) said that: You only need to type “Thanh Hoa safe agricultural products”, “postmart.vn”, or “voso.vn”, etc and look for the products you are interested in, the details of the products will appear immediately.
According to Mr. Tu, Thanh Hoa Co-operative Union has supported the sale of products of Binh Son agricultural and forestry cooperative on trading floors. So far, the products of the cooperative have been known and ordered by many people. Orders on e-commerce platforms are two to three times more than orders from traditional channels.
Similarly, Ms. Nguyen Le Ngoc Linh, Director of Ban Tho Cooperative (Hoa Quy commune, Nhu Xuan district, Thanh Hoa) said that the consumption of products is quite stable and the revenue increases annually thanks to bringing products to the e-commerce floors. In 2022, the cooperative is expected to process and consume over 20 tonnes of honey products, including fermented honey, and fermented medicinal materials with honey such as ginger, garlic, turmeric, etc. Almost 100% of the cooperative’s orders are placed and consumed through digital platforms.
Not only can domestic consumption be boosted, but many enterprises and cooperatives also promote cross-border sales thanks to e-commerce platforms. After many years of exporting agricultural products on Alibaba.com, Ms. Tran Thi Yen Phi, CEO of DSW Trading and Services Co., Ltd. commented that the demand for agricultural products, food, and beverages on this platform is increasing highly in almost countries on the world.
“It is estimated that revenue in the first half of 2022 has tripled compared to the same period last year. Vietnamese products such as mango, dragon fruit, durian, fresh lemon, etc are being welcomed by the Asian market, not only in terms of price but also in quantity and quality. Joining cross-border e-commerce platforms has helped my company increase export revenue from US$3,000 for the first order to US$260,000 in just one year, ” Ms. Yen Phi said.
Mr. Vu The Tung, Business Development Director of Alibaba.com Vietnam confirmed that there are about 2,000 Vietnamese enterprises selling products on Alibaba.com, of which, nearly 40% are related to agricultural products.
“On average, every day a Vietnamese supplier in the group of agricultural products, especially seafood, fruits, drinks, spices, etc has the opportunity to contact 15 potential buyers, which means 450 new buyers per month. This shows that agricultural products, food, and drinking water markets are very potential. Vietnamese suppliers in this field have a clear opportunity to connect with international customers and export to many new markets, ” Mr. Tung analyzed.
PROMOTING THE CONNECTION AMONG ENTERPRISES
Without the connection among logistics enterprises, we cannot bring fresh agricultural products “from garden to dining table”. (Photo: Internet)
According to the assessment of the departments and localities, in the past time, selling agricultural products on e-commerce platforms has helped farmers have more channels for consumption, but it is still small-scale. The reasons are: the knowledge about the online business of individual business households is limited; most agricultural products are mainly seasonal products, so the harvest and use time are short, packaging, preservation, and transportation to ensure the freshness until reaching consumers is also a great challenge.
From the first months of 2022, the Department of E-commerce and Digital Economy (Ministry of Industry and Trade) has issued plans to promote the consumption of agricultural products on e-commerce platforms to related units in provinces such as Bac Giang, Son La, Hung Yen, Bac Kan, and Can Tho. In addition, the Department also tries to connect with logistics enterprises to offer many incentive programs to consumers when buying Vietnamese agricultural products on e-commerce platforms.
Specifically, J&T Express has a shipping model for agricultural products and fresh goods only. In particular, this unit also helps farmers how to live stream products on social media, supports harvesting and selling products, and ensures the quality of products to consumers. As a result, farmers can control the prices without through any other units.
At the same time, Viettel Post supports training about photographing, updating orders, interacting with customers, and even packaging and preservation of products. In addition, Viettel Post also supports farmers putting their products on Voso.vn without costs. This is to help them promote the consumption of products via multi-channel.
A new agricultural management model called 3F: Feed – Farm – Food (from farm to table) has been built with the core goal of creating high-quality agricultural products, transporting them to consumers, and ensuring the freshness.
However, many businesses said that the model still faces some challenges, especially in sales management, from sale to purchase. Mr. Phan Binh, Director of J&T Express commented: “With the current strong online trend, express delivery service, e-commerce platforms, farmers, or KOC (Key opinion consumers) all hold a balanced position. Enterprises must propose comprehensive solutions together, guide farmers from point A to point B so that the trade of seller becomes more convenient, avoiding the situation of full dependence on a unit”.
Therefore, in addition to connecting with logistics units, the management of goods when selling on e-commerce platforms is also important. Mr. Lam The Khai, Director of UPOS product shared: “Currently, there are many sales and logistics enterprises using UPOS software. This software has a strong connection with e-commerce platforms with diverse features in the management of the product, order, and inventory. Accordingly, the seller can easily manage their goods and monitor transportation and customer information with a few simple actions. This increases the possibility of successful sales. ”
According to enterprises, when all parties work together to bring the most optimal experience to consumers, not only farmers but also the agriculture industry can reach a new level in the development trend of the world.