“Developing carbon-reducing production linked to product traceability and consumption”

BTO-This is the content of a scientific seminar jointly organized by the Union of Science and Technology Associations, the Provincial Agricultural Extension Center and the People's Committee of Ham Minh commune in Ham Thuan Nam on the afternoon of May 24.

Attending the workshop were more than 30 delegates representing a number of departments, offices, People's Committees of Ham Minh, Ham Cuong, Thuan Quy communes and people, dragon fruit production cooperatives, and community agricultural extension teams in the district.

*Mr. Luong Thanh Son - Chairman of the Provincial Union of Science and Technology Associations delivered the opening speech at the workshop.*

Speaking at the opening of the workshop, Mr. Luong Thanh Son - Chairman of the Provincial Union of Science and Technology Associations said that currently, the agricultural sector is the most directly and heavily affected by climate change and is also the sector that causes large greenhouse gas emissions, increasing global warming. Therefore, reducing emissions in agricultural production is an urgent requirement, contributing to environmental protection, improving product quality, increasing income for producers, and contributing to sustainable agricultural development.

During the 2021-2023 period, Binh Thuan province was supported by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the United Nations Development Program in Vietnam (UNDP) to participate in the project "Promoting private participation in low-carbon investment and climate change response in the agricultural sector in implementing Vietnam's NDC". The project was implemented in 4 cooperatives and enterprises of 3 key dragon fruit producing districts of Binh Thuan province, with a total of nearly 4,500 beneficiaries. To date, 100% of member households participating in the project have switched from compact lamps to energy-saving LED lamps; applied water-saving irrigation systems; applied electronic diaries in production; focused on producing dragon fruit certified by GlobalGAP to sign export contracts to high-end markets.

At the workshop, delegates boldly discussed and shared the direction of sustainable agricultural production development, reducing carbon emissions towards green agriculture in the province. In particular, MSc. Lai Chau Quang - Director of the Digital Information Portal Company, Hanoi (a unit coordinating with the Agricultural Extension Center) emphasized that when applying digital management and traceability, the value of products will be increased by providing information about the production process, production diary, product origin to customers more clearly and conveniently. It is a solution to promote the consumption of agricultural products using digital platforms, integrating values, creating convenience for producers, cooperatives, and consumers. Digital management solutions also help enhance the management capacity and production and business activities of producers.

The People's Committee and some farmers of Ham Minh commune proposed some solutions such as using agricultural extension resources to develop the market for technical consulting services and green production management for cooperatives and enterprises. Along with that, the commune community agricultural extension is associated with implementing models of transferring technical advances. Through the model of electronic diary recording, traceability to make products transparent, thereby creating trust for partners; signing long-term product consumption contracts with dragon fruit wine products, dried dragon fruit, etc.

*Dragon fruit purchasing facility in Ham Thuan Nam.*

At the end of the workshop, Mr. Ngo Thai Son - Deputy Director in charge of the Provincial Agricultural Extension Center said that in order to promptly remove difficulties and obstacles for farmers, the district's agricultural sector and local dragon fruit growers should focus on promoting digital transformation in agriculture. Thereby, aiming at the goal that every farmer has the ability to access, exploit and effectively use the digital data platform on agriculture, the traceability platform, reducing dependence on intermediaries from production, distribution to consumers...

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