Pillar 4

Agriculture for Income

Linking Poor Farmers to Supermarkets in Vietnam

In Vietnam, 80% of 86 million people earn a living from agriculture. Farmers in Quynh Luong commune conducted participatory resource assessments to identify advantages and challenges for improving livelihoods. Assessments indicated that farmers face low incomes due to: Limited and infertile agriculture land (sandy soil) Inadequate infrastructure to cope with regular storms, floods, and drought Reliance on traditional techniques Lack of market information on potential buyers, product types, and sale prices Production and marketing without support from service institutions and traders In order to capitalize on this opportunity CRS has been supporting farmers in the following areas: Training farmer groups to engage with higher-value market chains and build relationships with supermarket buyers. Strengthening cooperation between farmer groups and buyers/ traders through meetings and exchange visits to discuss: Commodities with high potential for return Supermarket requirements for quality, quantity, price, delivery, packaging, transportation and payment methods Improving technical knowledge and skills to help farmers produce commodities that meet the specifications of supermarket and local traders Upgrading drainage and irrigation systems and introducing participatory infrastructure management to improve production and transportation processes Facilitating produce exchanges between farmers and traders Facilitating access to regular market information through bimonthly market bulletins Working with official government structures to ensure participation and ownership

Changing consumer patterns have caused the supermarket industry in Vietnam to grow over the past few years. This has created a new

opportunity for farmers to access a more stable and high value market.

Result: improved economic outcomes for farmers

Photo: Sean Sprague

Cabbage sold in supermarket yields a 51% higher return than in local markets Watermelon sold in supermarket yields a 36% higher than in local markets New tomato varieties that meet supermarket quality standards yield a 40% increase compared with local varieties

Photo: Shaun Ferris

Photo: Shaun Ferris

Ability to produce field cabbage in off-season Opportunity to develop new market opportunities for farmers in fresh and processed markets.

Photo: Shaun Ferris

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