Enterprises develop sustainably through clean production practices

	Unstable prices, pepper turns to clean production
	Clean production will help Vietnamese fruit compete with imports

LengerSeafoods Vietnam Co., Ltd. has built aclam value chain according to ASC among authorities, clam farmers and companies in Nam Dinh province. Photo: Huong Diu.

Benefit through numbers

Inapplying clean production, Thai Nguyen Paper Export Joint Stock Company has built twosettling tanks to recover pulp and circulating water, solving the fibre mixed in the wastewater from the soaking stage.Thanks to that, it saved VND315 million per year and recovered the capital after 14 months. Meanwhile, the environmental benefits are effective, with 44 percent of pulp is recovered and pulp consumption reduced by up to 30 percent.

Nguyen Ho Nguyen, General Director of Lenger Seafoods Vietnam Co., Ltd., said the firm’sclam processing plant was expected to produce 5,500 tonnes of clams, the exportswould reach nearly 7million USD, and the revenue was expected to exceedVND25 billion in 2019. To achieve this, the company has built aclam value chain according to ASC among authorities, clam farmers and companies in Nam Dinh province.ACS certifies internationallysustainable and responsible clam farming areas.

“Investment in new and advanced technology equipment is away to help businesses effectively and efficiently produce, especially agricultural food product manufacturing and processing enterprises, which require fast processing and quality assurance, reducing material consumption during harvesting and processing,”Nguyen stated.Nguyen also proposed businesses of farming, processing, transporting, distributing and retailing cooperate to form a chain to create a sustainable and responsible planting area, producing and supplying clean food to consumers.

Notably, current consumption of raw materials to produce products in Vietnam is 1.5 - 2 times higher than other countriesin the region.Therefore, there are many opportunities for businesses to practice cleaner production in Vietnam. Citingfigures that businesses have saved by applying cleaner production, Le Xuan Thinh, Director of Vietnam Cleaner Production Center, said in the sugar industry, Song Con Sugar Joint Stock Company installedachemical boiler sludge demolition system to improve heat exchange efficiencyand recover condensed water to reuse it for the boiler. The initiative has saved VND360 million per year, andreduced CO2 emissions.

By installing a condensate recovery system and returning it back to the boiler, Sai Gon - Dong Xuan Beer Alcohol Joint Stock Company has saved VND70 million per year, recovered capital after three months, reduced raw material consumption and saved 600m3 of water annually.

Accompanying with policies

The Government has issued many policies related to sustainable production and consumption, in which, cleaner production strategy has been implemented since 2009. So far, after 10years of implementation of promoting cleaner productionprojects in industrial enterprises through Government programmes and with the support of development partners, thousands of Vietnamese enterprises have access to cleaner production projects and efficient and efficient use of resources.

However, many of themhave used outdated machines and production lines, which consume a lot of energy and affect the environment. Small and medium-sized enterprises account for 97 percent of the total number of businesses in Vietnam and their biggest constraint is capital and technology.Meanwhile, to develop sustainably and produce eco-friendly products, businesses have to make large investments related to technological innovation, improvement of production processes or replacement of input materials.

Dang Hai Dung, Chief of Cleaner Production and Sustainable Development Department (Ministry of Industry and Trade), said by 2025, 20 models and 30 percent of enterprises would have applied sustainable production; 70 percent of distribution establishments, which are supermarkets and trade centres in provinces/cities would have distributed eco-friendly products; capacity, scientific and technological development and international cooperation on sustainable consumption production would have improved; and programme management and implementation organization network would have been established and developed.