Dr Tran Ngoc Dam, Deputy Director of HCM City University of Technology and Education’s Renewable Energy Research Centre, said that Vietnamese continued to rely on cost-ineffective methods using chemicals, vacuuming and radiation in the final stages of packaging and preserving.

To preserve produce effectively, factors that affect quality must be tackled directly. Plasma technology, for example, can destroy and suppress microorganisms, while leaving the food quality and colour intact.

Tran Thi Ngoc Lan of the Binh Lan Environmental Biochemistry Co. Ltd., said that Vietnam’s volume of agricultural exports was still small compared to the country’s full potential due to undeveloped trade facilitation, high cost of materials, and limitations in farming and produce preservation (with farmers still using chemicals and preservatives).

Duong Thi Ngoc Diep of the HCM City University of Agriculture and Forestry said that vegetable processing should be improved, with more research on the nutritional value of vegetables and fruits to make full use of their best qualities.

The conference was held as part of the 2018 HCM City Animal Husbandry, Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery Processing Technology Fair and Exhibition, which ends on September 23.