Accordingly, green agriculture represents a stronger responsibility to the international community, especially in terms of resource conservation, biodiversity, greenhouse gas emission reduction, and climate change response.
Change to increase and create new values
“Building a Green Agriculture and Adding Value” is the theme of the 2022 Sustainable Agriculture Partnership (PSAV) plenary session, chaired by two co-chairs, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) Le Minh Hoan and Mr. Binu Jacob – General Director of Nestlé Vietnam Co., Ltd.
Up to now, PSAV has 8 Public-Private Working Groups (PPPs), including groups: Coffee, tea, vegetables, seafood, rice, spices and pepper, livestock, chemicals agriculture, with the participation of 120 organizations, including Government agencies, companies, industry associations, research institutes, international and non-governmental organizations. PSAV is co-chaired by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, representing the public sector, and the CEO of Nestlé Vietnam, representing the private sector.
Speaking at the meeting, Mr. Le Minh Hoan – Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development said that Vietnam’s agricultural industry not only serves 100 million people in the country, but has been ranked in the top 15 global agricultural product exporting powers. , reaching markets in over 190 countries and territories.
However, in the context of climate change, the market is affected by geopolitical factors, and consumer choices are changing, the agricultural industry also needs to change to increase and create new values, and at the same time show a stronger responsibility to the international community, especially in terms of resource conservation, biodiversity, emission reduction, and climate change adaptation.
“At COP26 (The 26th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change – PV), the Government of Vietnam has committed to reaching ‘zero’ net emissions by 2050. We are working to transition towards developing an ecological, carbon-neutral agriculture in addition to our goal. food security”, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development affirmed.
An example of regenerative agriculture
Through the cooperation with the parties to share sustainable farming techniques combined with digital transformation to farmers, the regenerative agriculture model introduced by Nestlé in Vietnam aims to contribute to building agriculture. Green, sustainable, low emission in line with the development trend of ecological agriculture of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Sharing at the conference, Mr. Binu Jacob – General Director of Nestlé Vietnam and Co-chair of PSAV said that currently nearly two-thirds of the Group’s greenhouse gas emissions come from raw materials for the food industry and other industries. indirect business activities.
Therefore, in Nestlé’s roadmap to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, reducing emissions from agricultural materials through the application of a regenerative agriculture model is one of the important things. that Nestlé is pursuing in the markets. In Vietnam, regenerative agriculture is implemented by Nestlé through the NESCAFÉ Plan and multi-stakeholder cooperation initiatives on sustainable agriculture.
| Mr. Binu Jacob – General Director of Nestlé Vietnam and Co-chair of PSAV |
Through the NESCAFÉ Plan program initiated in 2011, Nestlé Vietnam has strengthened public-private partnerships with partners such as the Central Highlands Agro-Forestry Science Institute, Provincial Agricultural Extension Centers, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. organizations and partners. The NESCAFÉ Plan program has successfully connected with farmers in the Central Highlands, improved the quality of Vietnamese coffee beans, applied sustainable farming methods, replanted old coffee trees, and increased incomes. farmers, ensuring livelihoods as well as increasing the power of female farmers.
Regenerative agriculture also improves soil quality and fertility as well as protects water resources and biodiversity. The improvement of soil quality also helps to increase the ability to absorb carbon gas into the soil, reducing emissions. The program has helped farmers replant 63,000 hectares of old coffee, reduce 40% of irrigation water and 20% of chemical fertilizers/pesticides, increase income by 30-100% by applying a reasonable intercropping model, and reduce carbon emissions per kilogram of coffee harvested.
In addition, NESCAFÉ Plan also helps to educate farmers through the application of digital transformation on their own coffee fields. Specifically, the program has supported the development and construction of a tool to manage the household diary (Digital Farmer Field Book – FFB), which helps farmers manage production and business activities effectively, control costs and profits, replacing paper management. At the same time, the detailed calculation of carbon emissions on the coffee fields is calculated.
According to Mr. Binu Jacob, Nestlé’s regenerative agriculture model has been successfully applied in coffee farming, which can also be a solution for other industries in the agricultural sector. Through the PSAV Plenary Meeting, Nestlé Vietnam affirmed to continue to increase the value of agricultural products, contributing to helping Vietnam become the center of food innovation in Asia instead of just exporting products. raw products, low value.
“The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is coordinating with the World Economic Forum (WEF) to establish the Food Innovation Connection Center (FIH), associated with the development of green, low-emission agriculture. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development calls on the business community, domestic and international organizations to participate in the preparation and implementation of FIH”, said Minister Le Minh Hoan, emphasizing the role of businesses in the FIH. agricultural production and product consumption.
The PSAV program was initiated in 2010 within the framework of the “New Vision Initiative in Agriculture” of the World Economic Forum (WEF) with the goal of 20-20-20 (increasing productivity by 20%, reducing by 20%). % poverty, 20% reduction in emissions).
