Ho Chi Minh City consumers prioritise products participating in green consumption campaign (Photo: VNA)

Nguyen Duy Lam, President of Vietnam Association of Food Science and Technology (VAFoST), said that food ingredients play a vital role in food security and safety. Ingredients not only determine the taste and texture of food, but also influence the quality and create consumer acceptance trends, while ensuring the production of high-quality food and meet market demand.

He said that Vietnam is blessed with abundant resources, especially new raw materials, making it strong and potential to serve the sustainable food and beverage industry.

Lam highlighted the outstanding progress of the industry, noting that last year, the sector’s revenue ranked third in Southeast Asia, only after Indonesia and the Philippines.

Food processing has become one of Vietnam's key industries, accounting for a proportion of 19.1% in the processing-manufacturing industry.

The green consumption trend after the COVID-19 pandemic as well as Vietnam’s wide network of free trade agreements with many partners have helped promote the export of Vietnamese food and beverage ingredients to international markets.

However, some experts held that for sustainable development, the Vietnamese food and beverage industry needs close cooperation among all stakeholders, while focusing on improving product quality by developing raw material sources and applying advanced technology and building a sustainable supply chain.

Along with the rising demand in the Vietnamese market, the food and beverage industry in Vietnam has achieved an average annual growth rate of 10%-12%, which is the foundation for international businesses to gain deeper access to the Vietnamese market through typical local products produced and processed to international standards.

Jim O'Toole, CEO of the Irish Food Authority (Bord Bia), said that Vietnamese consumers are increasingly interested in transparency about the origin of food, so the potential for promoting Irish food and beverage products in the Vietnamese market is huge. As Ireland is a country that stands out for green production with strict standards on food safety and sustainability, the country can meet the needs of Vietnamese consumers at present and in the future, he said.

Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Phan Thi Thang held that strengthening trade promotion activities is important to promote the food and beverage industry and create opportunities for domestic and foreign enterprises to introduce products. It also aids production and processing technology, helping domestic and foreign enterprises meet and seek partnership, thus expanding trade between Vietnam and other countries.

Thang predicted that the scale of the Vietnamese food and beverage market will continue to grow and reach more than 720 trillion VND (28,46 billion USD) in 2024, an increase of 10.92% compared to 2023. With the trend of consumers favouring green and sustainable products, the Vietnamese food and beverage market is also constantly transforming towards sustainability across the entire value chain of both domestic and imported products.