Bring Vietnamese agriculture products to e-commerce platforms

Technical barrier

Thieu lychee in Hai Duong was introduced on the Lazada e-commerce platform on May 14 and since then, there are as many as over three tons of the fruits have been sold, mostly in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City markets. According to the representative of this e-commerce platform, the lychee sold is mainly in the early season, with high value.

Following Lazada, Thieu lychee in Hai Duong continued to conquer the Sendo e-commerce platform on May 24, over six tons were sold in just one day with a price around VND 18,000 per kilogram. It is expected that the 12 tons of lychee will be sold on this platform.

This May, Thieu lychee in Bac Giang province will be introduced on some other domestic and international platforms such as Alibaba, Amazon. Besides, the province will also promote online selling on some websites namely: dacsanlucngan.vn, hay vaithieubacgiang.vn.

"Bringing lychee and agricultural products to the e-commerce platform requires efforts from many parties. This is a pilot program from 2020. Due to the Covid-19 epidemic, the process was implemented quickly and strongly," said Mr. Hoang Minh Chien, Deputy Director of the Department of Trade Promotion (VIETRADE), Ministry of Industry and Trade.

VIETRADE’s authority also cited three difficulties when it comes to selling agriculture via an e-commerce platform. First is the supply and demand issues. It requires strict progress of preservation to maintain the freshness of the fruit when it is delivered from the orchard to an intermediary and e-commercial platforms. 

Secondly, there must be commitments on the quality of the products from all related units in the supply chain as well as cooperatives and farmers.

However, the hardest thing is that farmers' knowledge about online business is still limited. "…this new way to do business requires them to research and update their knowledge to attract buyers. At that time, local authorities need to have policies to encourage farmers to apply digital technology in the production and consumption of agricultural products, "said Chien.

Lychee is just the beginning

In March, VIETRADE cooperated with some e-commerce platforms to support Hai Duong's agricultural products consumption as the province conduct a social distancing order due to Covid-19. Adding to the recent business on e-commercial platforms, the department realized that the cooperative, business households, and farmers have not acquired the ability to promote and sell their products themselves.

Market research is very important, according to Chien. For example, with lychee, the Russian market prefers a bold sweet taste, but the French prefer a less sweet taste, while Japan is looking to buy lychees with a slightly sour taste.

The E-commerce floor is just a sale channel side to side with export for Vietnamese agricultural products. Chien believes that the mastering of  "digitization" and  "4.0 technology" will facilitate Vietnam’s agriculture product in approaching the global market.

"The Ministry of Industry and Trade has assigned many relevant units, especially those directly participating in free trade agreements, to issue a set of standards to guide people to enjoy tax incentives. However, the amount of research and following of this guideline is still limited," said Chien.

In the immediate future, to ensure that the logistics system meets the business requirements of farmers on the e-commerce platform, the Department of Trade Promotion is ready to bridge the two sides. In addition, the Department will support farmers in promoting and marketing their products, as well as training and guiding people to master technology. It hopes that this will be a sustainable distribution channel for local agricultural products.

Besides lychee, the Department of Trade Promotion will bring more seasonal agricultural products such as Yen Chau mango, Moc Chau plum (Son La), Bac Giang lychee, Hung Yen longan, Binh Thuan dragon fruit... to e-commerce platforms.