Following successful sales of lychees, efforts have been made to sell other Vietnamese farm produce on e-commerce platforms, the Nong nghiep Viet Nam (Vietnam Agriculture) newspaper has reported.
Lychees grown in Bac Giang province (Photo: VNA)Following successful sales of lychees, efforts
have been made to sell other Vietnamese farm produce on e-commerce platforms, the
Nong nghiep Viet Nam (Vietnam Agriculture) newspaper has reported.
Overcoming technical
barriers
Lychees grown in the northern province of Hai Duong officially went on
sale on one of Vietnam’s leading online marketplaces, Lazada, on May 14. More
than 3 tonnes have been sold since.
The fruit then became available on Sendo 10 days later, which sold 6 tonnes
on the first day at 18,000 VND (0.78 USD) per kilo. The volume is projected to
double within a few more days.
Lychees grown in Bac Giang province, dubbed Vietnam’s “lychee kingdom”,
are to be sold on e-commerce platforms at home and abroad this month, including
Alibaba and Amazon. The province also bolsters online purchases on websites
such as dacsanlucngan.vn and vaithieubacgiang.vn.
Sales of lychees and other farm produce on online marketplaces require
efforts from various stakeholders. A programme was piloted last year and is now
proceeding in the face of COVID-19, said Hoang Minh Chien, Vice Director of the
Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency (VIETRADE) at the Ministry of Industry and Trade.
He noted that online sales face difficulties in supply, as it takes
many steps for products to reach consumers and strict preservation methods are
needed.
Quality commitments to customers are also a matter of concern because
Vietnamese prefer to buy agro products in-person to directly examine the quality.
When choosing products online, they need appraisals from relevant agencies and
commitments from stakeholders in the supply chain.
The greatest barrier is the lack of knowledge among farmers about online
sales, Chien pointed out, adding that many growers find it difficult to offer
their products and attract customers on the channel.
Local authorities must devise incentives for farmers to apply digital
technology in farm produce cultivation and consumption, he underlined.
Other agro products to hit
e-commerce sites
Following lychees, other fruit in season will be sold on e-commerce
platforms, in particular mangoes and plums from Son La, longans from Hung Yen,
and dragon fruits from Binh Thuan.
Farmers are advised to diversify and thoroughly study demand in markets,
build their brands, and pay due regard to packaging.
Vietnamese agro products will hold more advantages in the global market
if digitalisation and advanced technology are applied efficiently, Chien said.
In March, VIETRADE joined hands with certain online marketplaces to
sell agro products from Hai Duong after social distancing measures were imposed
to curb the spread of COVID-19./.