Efforts to open up the consumption of agricultural products during the epidemic period

​Anh Hoang Thy Food Processing Company Limited (Bien Hoa City) promotes the supply of pork to Ho Chi Minh City and Bien Hoa City. Photo: By Phan Anh

The wholesale markets in the province are still operating stably, well implemented epidemic prevention and control measures to ensure food supply in the province as well as neighboring areas.

Output connection

According to Mr. Le Van Loc, Deputy Director of the Department of Industry and Trade, the Department has worked with the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Industry and Trade on the plan to transfer agricultural products and foodstuffs from Dong Nai to Ho Chi Minh City. Accordingly, goods from provinces, including Dong Nai to Ho Chi Minh City, will not be concentrated and transshipped at wholesale markets, but will be taken directly to consumption places, slaughterhouses, and traditional markets. The government prioritizes the form of coordination, online transactions, delivery to the place of consumption without consolidating and transshipping goods at the 3 above-mentioned wholesale markets of Ho Chi Minh City to ensure safety measures to prevent epidemics in goods trading activities. Currently, most of Dong Nai's products transferred to Ho Chi Minh City currently are livestock and poultry.

With the same view of stabilizing output as well as ensuring the supply of goods to the market, Mr. Nguyen Truong Giang, Director of the Provincial Department of Livestock and Veterinary Medicine, said that the quantity of pork supplied to Ho Chi Minh City has decreased compared to before because many large wholesale markets in Ho Chi Minh City were temporarily closed. However, activities of buying and selling live pigs from Dong Nai to Ho Chi Minh City market will still be maintained because businesses and slaughterhouses in the province that have a chain of links in distribution will strengthen the source of resources to this market.

Supermarkets in the province also promote the consumption of agricultural products for farmers. Ms. Hoang Thi To Uyen, Deputy Director of Co.opmart Bien Hoa shared, the goods at the supermarket are still abundant, complete, and the prices are stable. Supermarkets also strengthen and connect the local agricultural products to supermarkets. In particular, the Co.opmart system is implementing, promoting consumption and bringing many kinds of local fruits, including Long Khanh rambutan, into supermarkets in the Co.opmart chain.

Strengthening for goods transportation

Supermarkets are currently the main consumption channels of agricultural products and livestock products of Dong Nai. Photo: Customers buying goods at Co.opmark Bien Hoa supermarket.

Actively responding to the epidemic, many businesses in the field of food business and processing have made efforts to promote the consumption of agricultural products and foodstuffs of Dong Nai to the market. Mr. Dao Van Cuong, a representative of Anh Hoang Thy Food Processing Co., Ltd (Bien Hoa City) said, currently, the company's pork source is quite abundant, the company's distribution channels are quite stable, especially the supply to the supermarket chains in Ho Chi Minh City and including supermarkets in Dong Nai. The company will have a plan to adjust the supply to the market appropriately when there are fluctuations.

Even localities that are isolated by the Covid-19 epidemic are also proactive in planning to consume agricultural products, limiting the stagnation of agricultural products. Chairman of the Thong Nhat District People's Committee Mai Van Hien said that at present, essential goods and necessities in communes in the medical isolation period of the district are guaranteed to be plentiful with stable prices. The district has also taken the initiative for grocery stores and small businesses in the area to register for on-the-spot supply. Small businesses trading in essential items registered and licensed by the government will be able to supply and sell goods in accordance with regulations on prevention and control of the Covid-19 epidemic, avoiding crowded people gathered.

For agricultural products that are in the harvest season such as green vegetables, rambutan, etc., the district allows motor vehicles to enter to transport harvested agricultural products for consumption, but it is necessary to strictly comply with regulations on prevention and control. In order to fight the epidemic, drivers of these vehicles must have negative test results for SARS-CoV-2 according to provincial regulations, and at the same time must disinfect vehicles, limit gathering of crowded people.

The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, who focuses on monitoring and updating the output of agricultural products to the harvest period of the localities, coordinates with the units under the Department to take note on the situation of consumption to promptly advise solutions to ensure the consumption of all products, not to let the congestion of agricultural products happen. The Department also coordinates with other departments and branches in implementing policies to support and promote the consumption of agricultural products for localities, coordinates with agricultural product processing enterprises in the area, mobilizing and supporting the purchase of preliminarily processed, processed, preserved and stored agricultural products.

Phan Anh