Connecting Hanoi businesses with the German organic agricultural market

On February 14, 2023, Biofach 2023 - The world's leading trade fair for organic food officially opened in Nürnberg, Germany. The fair attracted more than 2,000 booths from nearly 100 countries with organic products in many different categories such as fresh food, dry food, beverages, pharmaceuticals.... Biofach 2023 takes place over 4 days from February 14 to 17, 2023.

Vietnam Embassy in Germany and Vietnamese enterprises participate in Biofach 2023

The Vietnam Organic Agriculture Association (VOAA) and the Office for Coordination of the New Rural Development Program in Hanoi, in collaboration with the Trade Office of the Vietnamese Embassy in Germany, organized a program to trade and connect businesses. with the topic Organic Vietnam. Attending the program were representatives of the German Organic Agriculture Association Naturland and representatives of German and Vietnamese businesses such as Visimex, VietHaus, COCOVIE, Hagimex, Sokfarm, Hanuti, Tam Duong Tea, Vinasamex, CPT Corp, DACE...

Attending the program were Mr. Le Quang Long, Consul General, Consulate General of Vietnam in Frankfurt, Ms. Do Viet Ha, Trade Office representative, Vietnamese Ambassador to Germany, Ms. Nguyen Mai Phuong, Ambassador staff Vietnamese restaurant in Germany; Mr. Tran Ngoc Thanh, Vice Chairman of Vietnam Organic Agriculture Association; Mr. Nguyen Van Chi represents the Coordination Office of the New Rural Development Program in Hanoi City; representatives of the German Organic Agriculture Association - Naturland, representatives of German businesses, Vietnamese enterprises such as Visimex, VietHaus, COCOVIE, Hagimex, Sokfarm, Hanuti, Tam Duong Tea, Vinasamex, CPT Corp, DACE...

Delivering a welcome speech, Mr. Le Quang Long said that this was the second time the Consulate General attended the meeting and trade program with businesses within the framework of Biofach Fair. He highly appreciated the dynamism of Vietnamese enterprises in developing organic products, increasing productivity, quality and competitiveness, meeting the increasing demands of the consumer market.

Hanoi business delegation participates in Biofach 2023 Organic Fair in Germany

Representative of the Vietnam Trade Office in Germany, Ms. Do Viet Ha shared with businesses some information about the German market - the second largest organic market in the world. The deal said that European consumers, especially Germans, are very focused on healthy products, and the tendency to consume organic products is increasing. Sales of organic food in Germany have increased significantly over the past decade, from 6.64 billion euros in 2011 to almost 15.9 billion euros in 2021. In Germany, 50% of organic products are sold in stores. retail supermarkets such as Edeka, Aldi, Lild, Netto, Rewe…; 32% are sold at supermarkets specializing in organic products such as Bio Company, Alnatura, LPG Bio Markt, Denn's Bio Mark, Basic Bio, Organic Grocery Store… and 18% are sold through other retail channels.

According to Mr. Tran Ngoc Thanh, Vice President of Vietnam Organic Agriculture Association, after 3 years of implementing the Organic Agriculture Project, up to now, Vietnam's organic agricultural production is developing strongly. The export turnover of organic agricultural products is over 335 million USD/year and has been present in over 180 countries and territories. Europe is the main import market for Vietnamese organic products. He added that this is the 6th time in a row, the Vietnam Organic Agriculture Association (VOAA) has organized for Vietnamese businesses to attend the Biofach Fair with 10 stalls displaying organic products. The fair is an opportunity for Vietnamese businesses to exchange business opportunities, find partners, approach and penetrate the world organic food market.

Vietnamese products on display at this year's Biofach Fair are quite diverse such as pepper, cashew, cinnamon, coffee, coconut rice, organic noodle soup, garlic chili sauce, coconut oil, etc. international certifications such as: JAS Control Union Certifications, Bio Trade, USDA Organic, For Life, Global

Enterprises in Hanoi city are negotiating with partners at the fair

Vietnam has 10 businesses participating in Biofach 2023, in which Hanoi has 4 enterprises: visimex JSC, World Nutraceutical Joint Stock Company, Vietnam anise production and export joint stock company, the company Agricultural Development and Environmental Consulting Ltd. Mr. Nguyen Van Chi - Deputy Chief of the Office of Coordination of the New Rural Development Program in Hanoi, said that the B2B trading session took place very effectively with the participation of traders and buyers not only from Germany. but from other countries such as Peru, Turkey, the Netherlands, Spain... Hanoi has connected with 100 businesses, supermarkets and customers in Germany, this is a great promising opportunity for agricultural products. organic farming of Hanoi city, bringing opportunities to export Hanoi's agricultural products to the German market.

Vietnam Organic Association, Hanoi New Rural Coordinating Office and businesses talking to customers

In the past year, consumer demand for organic products in Germany in particular and Europe in general has decreased compared to previous years due to inflation, soaring energy prices, the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic and The conflict between Russia and Ukraine caused consumers to tighten their spending, reducing the purchase of organic products that cost more than conventional products. However, this is only a temporary situation, the development of organic products is a strong development trend in the world.

The German government is very interested in the development of organic farming. In order to achieve the climate change goals of the Paris Agreement, Germany wants to limit the use of pesticides and pesticides in agriculture, so organic farming is at the heart of German agriculture's development. The German government has set a target that by 2030, the area of organic farming will account for 30% of the total agricultural land.

With the development trend, the consumption of organic products combined with the advantages of the EVFTA Free Trade Agreement, the potential and opportunities for Vietnam's organic agricultural products are increasingly expanding. Vietnamese businesses need to make the most of the opportunities brought, timely grasp consumption trends, regulations on food safety of importing countries, requirements for international organic consumption certification. to improve product quality and expand export markets for Vietnamese organic products.

By Minh Ngoc, Vietnam Business Forum