At the opening ceremony. (Photo: ITPC)

The Investment and Trade Promotion Centre of HCM City (ITPC) and Central Retail Vietnam, a member of Thailand’s Central Group, are organising the programme for the first time to assist Vietnamese businesses in promoting and taking their products into the supermarket’s supply chain.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, ITPC Deputy Director Ho Thi Quyen said all products seeking to join the programme have to pass Central’s quality standards, with a focus on safety and innovation, and feature regional or traditional characteristics.

She said the organising committee had received applications from nearly 100 businesses, and 40 were selected to exhibit packaged and processed foods, tea, coffee, spices, confectionery, and agricultural products like rice, fruits, vegetables, and organic items.

The programme would enable Vietnamese businesses to promote their products and brands to domestic and international consumers via Central Retail, grasp the latest consumer trends by working with its sourcing executives and improve product quality and competitiveness for exporting to its stores in Thailand and other countries, she said.

A B2B matching conference was organised on July 19 with the participation of over 100 Vietnamese firms to help them take their products into Central’s supply chain.

Central’s heads of sourcing in Vietnam directly met with participating businesses to discuss and assess the latter’s products and identify products they could buy.

Products, besides meeting food safety and hygiene standards, also need to have various quality certificates and documents required by Central.

Suppliers must also meet other requirements in terms of production processes and labour conditions, Quyen added.

The event runs until July 22.