Sustainable development model 'Vinamilk Green Farm' shared at global milk conference

Attending this year's Conference, Vinamilk, the sole representative of the dairy industry in Vietnam and Southeast Asia, was invited to share about sustainable development orientation through the Vinamilk Green Farm ecological farm model and the "green" value chain to produce 100% Vinamilk Green Farm fresh milk products.

Mr. Nguyen Quang Tri - Marketing Executive Director shared the story of "Green Farm" at the conference.

Steps towards sustainable development of the dairy industry in Vietnam and Southeast Asia

In recent years, especially after the period of turmoil caused by the pandemic, the topic of sustainable development in all fields, including the dairy industry, has received more attention than ever before. At the 2022 Global Dairy Conference, there were more than 20 presentations and discussions shared from many countries with developed dairy industries, leading in advanced trends in the world, in which the topic of sustainable development stood out.

Vietnam, like other countries in Southeast Asia, does not have favorable natural conditions for dairy farming. Moreover, sustainable development practices in the dairy industry require huge investment and a lot of experience, which is also creating many challenges for businesses when applying. Therefore, the sharing article on "Green Farm - a step forward for sustainable development of the dairy industry in Vietnam and Southeast Asia" from Vinamilk received attention and made an impression at the Conference, as an effort and pioneering in the general trend of the region and the world.

Mr. Richard Hall and Vinamilk representatives discussed more about the Green Farm model that Vinamilk has built in Vietnam.

Mr. Richard Hall – Chairman of the Global Dairy Conference 2022 said: “Over the past 25 years, the two most talked about topics have been health and sustainability. Sustainability is becoming increasingly important, and the global dairy industry has great stories to tell and is working to achieve greater success.”

Commenting further on the sharing of the representative of Vietnam, Vinamilk, Mr. Richard Hall said that he learned a lot about the "Green Farm" model as well as from the sharing at today's conference.“I am very impressed with the sharing of Vinamilk, one of the leading dairy companies in the world as well as one of the companies that is implementing very good sustainable development programs. I really look forward to the time when farms in Vietnam and many places in Asia all become “Green farms” because this is truly a very advanced model.” –Mr. Richard Hall shared.

Sustainable development was identified by the conference as a top priority for the global dairy industry.

In his presentation, the representative of the International Dairy Federation (IFD) said that aspects of sustainable development, such as regenerative agriculture, animal welfare, and carbon neutrality, will be top priorities for the global dairy industry and commented that Vinamilk is on the right track, especially when the demand for milk in Vietnam is increasing.

At the Conference, Mr. Nguyen Quang Tri - Marketing Executive Director of Vinamilk also shared the trends of the dairy industry in Vietnam with representatives of other countries. Accordingly, Vinamilk's orientation is to bring quality products and premiumization thanks to added values ​​to customers, in which, the environmental friendliness factor will be promoted by Vinamilk such as Vinamilk Green Farm products. Through the products, Vinamilk hopes to more clearly convey messages and commitments on sustainable development to customers.

Vinamilk is well aware that sustainable development is not just a destination, but a journey we always move forward and an irreversible trend of development. Maintaining and creating sustainable values ​​has been, is and will be the motto that Vinamilk always aims for when developing and bringing products of not only the best quality for people, but also for nature for a healthy and sustainable future for future generations.

Mr. Nguyen Quang Tri - Marketing Executive Director of Vinamilk

Vinamilk Green Farm ecological farm is being invested in, developed and expanded by Vinamilk.

Vinamilk Green Farm – a typical model of aspects of sustainable development

Not only marking the progress of the Vietnamese dairy industry in the path to sustainable development, Vinamilk's construction of the Vinamilk Green Farm ecological farm system in just 2 years of being affected by the Covid-19 pandemic has also received high appreciation. This shows the company's strong commitment to implementing sustainable development strategies.

Solar energy has been put into use in the entire system of farms and factories of Vinamilk, including Green Farm farms.

1. Carefully select input:

- 03 Vinamilk Green Farm farms located in Tay Ninh, Quang Nam and Thanh Hoa, are part of a system of 13 farms in Vietnam, built on the basis of the most modern farms and meeting Global GAP standards. The farms are located in strategic locations, scientifically connected with Vinamilk's most modern factories to ensure the quality of raw fresh milk during transportation.

- Vinamilk's Green Farm system has a total area of ​​nearly 950 hectares, managing a herd of more than 20,000 dairy cows. The dairy cows are imported from the US, Australia, New Zealand, 100% purebred. The herd helps provide 250 tons of raw milk per day, combined with 3 modern factories with large capacity, each day about 7 million cartons of milk are supplied to the market.

- 100% of the dairy cows' food sources meet Global GAP standards

2. Regenerative agriculture practices:

- 100% of Green Farm farms use renewable energy such as solar energy. Modern waste treatment systems and biogas technology help significantly reduce CO2 emissions, converting waste into resources such as: organic fertilizer for pastures, methane gas to pasteurize milk for calves, and drying grass to feed the cows.

- Applying organic atomic carbon technology reduces methane emissions and odors in livestock farming.

- Land, a natural resource that plays an important role in agriculture, is optimally managed with a soil regeneration cycle. Green Farm farms all practice organic farming, do not use chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and apply soil regeneration cycles to manage resources.

- Water resources are used economically and recycled for irrigation activities. Wastewater is treated to ensure no impact on the environment of surrounding areas.

- Part of the farm's land area is used to build biological regulating lakes, a breakthrough initiative to help regulate and cool the air for dairy cows in dry, hot climates and contribute to creating a water cycle on the farm.

- The green area at Green Farm farms is maintained at a coverage rate of over 70%. Trees are planted around the farm to create a biological belt, helping to protect the ecosystem and limit impacts from the outside environment.

Animal welfare is always focused on and guaranteed at Vinamilk farms.

3.Applying advanced technology to sustainable agriculture

- At Vinamilk Green Farm, dairy cows are cared for with special regimes thanks to the application of advanced technology. Animal welfare is a priority for Vinamilk. The farm has a modern cooling system, ensuring the barn temperature is always below 28 degrees Celsius, helping the dairy cows feel comfortable, providing high milk yield with the best quality of raw fresh milk and absolutely no use of growth hormones in animal husbandry.

- In addition to the source of fresh milk from the farms, Vinamilk Green Farm fresh milk products are also guaranteed to be sustainable in the production process such as: the factories producing 100% Green Farm Fresh Milk products all meet strict international standards, have a modern waste treatment system to ensure 100% of wastewater is treated to standards before being discharged into the environment. At the same time, PAS 2060 on emission management and greenhouse gas neutralization is being implemented and evaluated.

- The rate of using green energy such as CNG, Biomass, solar energy to replace fuels such as gasoline, DO/FO oil, etc. in production activities at Vinamilk currently reaches nearly 87%, contributing positively to the goal of reducing CO2 emissions.

In addition to the three main pillars that guide sustainable development, the farms and factories in Vinamilk Green Farm's production chain are also creatingsustainable value for the communitySpecifically, these units create thousands of jobs for local people, thereby improving labor skills through training and development and access to modern techniques and technology.

Green Farm farms also play a role as the nucleus of local economic development, promoting sustainable agriculture. Vinamilk implements a model of cooperation with farmers, purchasing corn and grass to feed dairy cows and at the same time supporting organic fertilizer sources, contributing to improving income for farmers in the area. At the same time, Vinamilk organizes training for people to cultivate and grow crops according to Global GAP standards, not using chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and environmentally friendly farming methods.

Vast fields of corn and grass provide quality food for cows at Green Farm.

Realizing the Vietnamese Government's policy and commitment to reduce net emissions at COP26, towards zero by 2050, in the agricultural sector, as a leading dairy enterprise in Vietnam, Vinamilk has implemented action plans and accelerated processes to contribute to achieving this goal.

Accordingly, Vinamilk has included sustainable development as one of the four development strategies for the 2022-2026 period, specifically: promoting the sustainable development roadmap according to successful models of the world dairy industry; applying science and technology to agriculture and production in a sustainable direction; increasing renewable energy and planting trees to neutralize greenhouse gases, aiming for net zero emissions by 2050.