Vietnam Food & Beverage Forum 2019 held in Hanoi

Co-organised by the American Chamber of Commerce Vietnam (AmCham Vietnam) in cooperation with the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM), the Vietnam Dairy Association (VDA), and the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), the forum focused on opportunities and challenges for the food and beverage (F&B) industry in Vietnam from many different perspectives, and shared international best practices towards sustainable goals in business and food safety management in Vietnam.

The event consisted of two dialogue sessions, on the topics of: Food and Beverage Industry and Actions for Sustainable Environment, and Policy Dialogue to Promote Manufacturing and Trading in the F&B Industry in Vietnam.

In the first session, speakers from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Food Industry Asia (FIA), and the Packaging Recycling Organization Vietnam (PRO Vietnam) focused on discussing the issues of plastic packaging, waste management, and promoting a circular economic model towards sustainable development. Practical experiences and initiatives were shared to resolve these issues in a real-world and effective manner, especially in Vietnam’s F&B industry.

For decades, food and beverage packaging has been an important part of our modern lives, but post-consumer packaging has placed a heavy burden on the natural environment. As explored at the forum, plastic waste management is a complicated matter that requires a holistic approach involving commitments and partnerships from all stakeholders in the public and private sectors.

In the second session, speakers and delegates focused on issues related to policies and regulations on quality management and commodity standards in Vietnam’s F&B industry. The speakers included representatives from the Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality; the Department of Food Safety; the Ministry of Health; and independent experts from the International Life Sciences Institute.

Quality and standards are the basic characteristics for evaluating all types of goods, including food and beverages, because these characteristics help consumers to understand important information about the products they eat and drink. Improvements in the management of food quality standards will also promote the export of goods by domestic businesses by standardizing quality regulations that meet international standards.

Addressing the event, the Executive Director at AmCham Vietnam, Mary Tarnowka, said that as Vietnam’s population continues to surge, with rising income, purchasing power, and demand for new food and beverage markets, the issues of sustainability and food safety management standards are critically important.

The event explored the opportunities and challenges of the food and beverage business and regulatory climate in Vietnam, she said, adding that discussions and knowledge-sharing at the forum would promote improved regulations based on sound science in line with international standards that ensure safe food and beverage products for Vietnamese consumers and the sustainability of economic growth, thus helping facilitate Vietnam’s rapidly increasing food and beverage exports.