Illustrative photo

Green innovations

Coming to PPJ Group in the early days of 2024, a bustling atmosphere covers every stage of the company's production process. Every worker's face beamed with joy.

Taking us on a tour of the company's Sample Design Center, Ms. Nguyen Thi Lien, Deputy General Director of PPJ, said that last year, the entire textile industry was greatly affected by the difficulties of the world market, but at PPJ - with 30 member units spread across the country, the situation is still relatively stable and ensures full employment for the company’s workforce. Accordingly, PPJ's revenue remains equivalent to 2022. At present, PPJ has also signed enough orders until the end of the first quarter of 2024.

This is a positive result in the overall gray picture of the entire industry in the past year. Ms. Lien explained that this positivity is the result of PPJ's investment process over many years in the direction of green production, environmental protection, in accordance with market trends. Many modern equipment is invested to minimize the use of water and chemicals in the production process to have the least impact on the environment. Typically, robotic equipment for fabric surface treatment costs up to 300,000 EUR but can replace dozens of workers...

In particular, in the production line at PPJ's Model Design Center, there are many devices manufactured by Sinnika Vietnam Co., Ltd. (Sinnika Tech) - a member unit of PPJ, such as decolorization equipment which use ozone technology, the E-flow machine sprays chemicals to create effects on denim. These devices all bring superior performance compared to workers, while saving maximum amount of water and chemicals during the manufacturing process.

If the green transformation process at PPJ is persistence with each slow and steady step, the story at Duy Tan Recycling Joint Stock Company (Duytan Recycling) is a shift to a new path. After many years of operation in the field of plastic production, the company's head, Mr. Tran Duy Hy, is always concerned about creating recycled plastic products that meet high standards, reducing the burden on the environment.

​After a year of traveling to many places around the world to learn, Mr. Hy chose the most modern technology, Bottle to Bottle from Austria - which helps regenerate a plastic bottle into a plastic bottle and ensures absolute safety in terms of users’ health when used in the food industry. In 2019, Duytan Recycling Factory began construction in Long An and is currently operating with a capacity of 60,000 tons/year, equivalent to more than 4 billion plastic bottles recycled each year. Although it is a plastic waste recycling factory, Duytan Recycling ensures 3 environmental sustainability criteria: zero waste, zero wastewater, and zero emissions. Duytan Recycling's recycled plastic pellets not only provide raw materials for major fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies and partners in Vietnam but also export to 12 countries, including the United States and Europe with the exports of over 9,000 tons per year, accounting for 56%.

Also because of the orientation towards a circular and sustainable economic model, Duytan Recycling has a rather special title: director of sustainable development. Holding this position, Mr. Le Anh said his mission is to monitor and grasp sustainable development trends in the world, modern technologies to serve this trend, and issues that businesses pay attention to and comply. On the other hand, Mr. Le Anh also acts as a "media ambassador" about the story of sustainable development to the community, partners, and social organizations.

Similarly, many other businesses have also had new initiatives that have positive effects to the environment and business activities. For example, Phuc Sinh Consumer Goods Joint Stock Company has just launched the tea bag product "Cascara Blue Son La". The unique feature of this product lies in the ingredients, which are taken from the flesh of original Son La Arabica coffee husks. Instead of just being used as fuel or fertilizer for plants, and even leaving a burden on the environment, coffee husks after being processed into cascara tea have very high value, with the selling price in Vietnam reaching up to 1.5 million VND/kg, etc.

The inevitable path

Currently, Vietnam has deeply integrated into the world economy, with 19 bilateral and multilateral free trade agreements signed, of which 16 have taken effect, making Vietnam one of leading countries in the region in participating in bilateral and multilateral economic cooperation frameworks.

Economic expert Pham Phu Ngoc Trai assessed that the green economy is no longer just an idea but has become an inevitable transformation in the sustainable development process of businesses. The linear economic model, where there is only exploitation and utilization of resources, is no longer a suitable choice for long-term and sustainable development. Currently, more and more businesses are switching to a circular economy model, and consumers are also gradually switching to choosing "green brand" products. According to a report by the World Bank (WB), by 2030, the circular economy will add 4,500 billion USD to the global economy.

With a total of nearly 900,000 active enterprises and approximately 150,000 newly established enterprises each year, enterprises are the force that plays a core role in the country's green transformation path. Currently, many businesses have actively converted technology and production processes to green business models, protecting the environment.

From the perspective of management agencies, Ms. Tran Anh Dao, Deputy General Director in charge of operating the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HOSE), said that listed companies operating in the field of exporting products and goods are increasingly aware that sustainable development is no longer a distant issue, but brings practical benefits to businesses themselves. Enterprises have taken many specific actions towards sustainable development such as: establishing a sustainable development subcommittee under the direct supervision of the Board of Directors; Deploying a circular economy model, making the most of resources and minimizing impact on the environment; converting the use of solar energy at factories and production facilities; Carry out carbon footprint inventory for exported products, etc.