Farmers are increasingly receiving assistance from organisations to help them produce high-quality, traceable goods fit for export, experts said at a conference in HCM City on Friday.

Vu Kim Hanh, chairwoman of the Vietnamese High Quality Product Business Association, said the association had issued more geographical indicator certificates and helped firms become more aware of high-quality standards.

She said that adding value during the agricultural process required modern technologies and deep understanding of markets, and that retailers must keep track of the quality of the food they sell.

Most farmers, however, are still unfamiliar with high-quality standards and applying for GLOBALG.A.P. certification.

Hanh said that a cost-effective “localg.a.p.” programme would help them gradually reach GLOBALG.A.P. standards through consultancies and incremental goals.

Pham Viet Anh, a representative of GLOBALG.A.P., said that a “localg.a.p.” number which identifies individual farmers would be included in the GLOBALG.A.P. database. These numbers will help improve traceability of their goods.

The programme also helps retailers find good local suppliers and farmers gain access to local markets.

Le Dang Trung, general director of Real-Time Analytics, said that farmers’ use of mobile apps could help them enter information that would improve traceability.

The conference was held by the Vietnamese High-Quality Product Business Association. – VNS