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Category: Kinh doanh

Marion Klaver: Social media and how consumers cope with uncertainties of safe vegetables

Posted on by Luyen

HANOI – During my Msc Mangement Economics and Consumers studies at Wageningen University I was given the beautiful chance to be part of the Fresh Studio team in Hanoi as an intern.

Choice for Fresh Studio

Having been abroad only within the European borders, I was looking for an internship outside Europe. From within my network, I heard about Fresh Studio in Vietnam. After reading about the company, the contact was quickly made. Within six months I set foot on Vietnamese soil, a choice which I will never regret. Fresh Studio is a very inspiring company, there is an incredible synergy between creativity, well-considered solutions, and the way diverse disciplines work together.

Internship / thesis 

Throughout this five month period I conducted a study about the role social media plays on how Vietnamese consumers cope with perceived uncertainties on safety of vegetables in Hanoi.
The research focused on the following three main questions:

1. In what way do online social networks play a role in the demand for safety of vegetables by Vietnamese consumers?


2. Which alternative information coping strategies may be used with regard to safety of vegetables in Vietnam?


3. What is the impact of online social networks on other coping strategies with regard to information about safe vegetables in Vietnam.

In order to answer the research questions, 1400 surveys with Vietnamese consumers were carried out at shops which claim to sell safe vegetables. This research has resulted in a Msc thesis for Wageningen University. 

Next to my own project, I had the opportunity to work together with colleagues on different marketing and business development projects. Amongst these, two projects carried out in Hanoi, one a safe vegetable retail census and the other a vegetables project with the Dutch school. All projects have challenged me to move away from the comfort of my study books and theories to put my skills into practice.

Reflection 

Doing an internship overseas involves a bit of a culture shock. Not only did I had to get used to the culture of the country (e.g. bargaining in every shop, crowded streets with motorbikes) but even more I had to adapt to a different culture of working. For example my colleagues saw me as their friend instead of as their colleague. So, after work I did spend a lot of time with them at street canteens and bars. They also showed me many places in Hanoi and took me on motorbike road trips to the North of Vietnam. Seeing many places in Vietnam and also Cambodia, I can say I have explored a bit of the way of living and working in a South East Asian country.


Being abroad offers a fantastic opportunity to broaden your horizon; you will experience a process of development that will make you a better and open-minded person. For me, it was an experience that I am sure I will remember for the rest of my life.Also interesting to read:

BopInc and partners publishes: Towards collective impact at the Base of the Pyramid

Posted on by Luyen

BoP Innovation Center (BoPInc), together with partners (among others Fresh Studio) capture learnings from the program ‘Three Pilots for Pro-Poor Innovation’ (3P4PPI) in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda and Vietnam to improve the quality and enabling environment for future pilots. The insights about BoP partnerships are bundled in this third publication.

Successful implementation of inclusive innovations requires strong partnerships across countries and across sectors including companies, social entrepreneurs, BoP actors, NGOs, public authorities and knowledge institutes. Sharing risks, responsibilities, resources and competences with partners is necessary in order to co-create collective impact at the Base of the Pyramid.


A lot has been written on the importance of building strong partnerships that target and include low-income groups. However, there seems to be a lack of experience-based insights that reflect on existing BoP partnerships. This publication gives insights and tools to support organizations in finding the right partners and bringing inclusive innovations that improve the livelihood at the BoP to scale.

The publication is available through download on the BopInc website

Fresh Studio co-founder of the Food Agri & Aqua Business Sector Committee (FAASC)

Posted on by Luyen

The agriculture sector plays a crucial role for the Vietnamese economy. To improve this sector, four leading agriculture companies took the initiative to form the Food, Agri and Aquaculture Business Sector committee (FAASC). The founding companies include de Heus, FrieslandCampina, Control Union and Fresh Studio.

The FAASC is formed under the direction of the European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam (Eurocham). Since its start, the FAASC has grown to twelve members, among which Metro Cash & Carry Vietnam, Bureau Veritas, Bayer, Nestlé, Invivo labs, La Vie, Virbac and Yara. FAASC believes that the Food, Agri and Aqua Business sector can become stronger, more competitive and more high-tech without detrimental effects for the population, country and the environment. Contrary, in the long-term the sector could become more sustainable without necessarily increasing the costs.


The objective of FAASC is to improve the competitiveness of the Food, Agri and Aqua Business sector, by sharing knowledge and experience with the public sector and by sharing of best practices among the FAASC members in Vietnam. In order to reach this objective, FAASC:

  • Focuses on improvement of food safety for human-beings and animals trough a value chain approach;
  • Creates a level playing field for small, large, local and international companies regardless of legal entity, size and nationality, based on a common interest,
  • Creates a sustainable Food, Agri and Aqua Business sector in Vietnam for the long term and improves the sustainability of the sector.

FAASC event November 2013: Food Safety – Mission Possible?

For more information about FAASC, visit: Eurochamvn/FAASCAlso interesting to read:

Victor Benbakir: Discovering Vietnamese aquaculture sector

Posted on by Luyen

CAN THO – For this study I had to find a 6 months internship related to this main subjects and Fresh Studio has offered me the possibility to go in Vietnam to make this course.

I am Victor Benbakir a French student of 21 years old; I studied Bsc in sustainable aquaculture and quality management in the University of Savoie.


During my internship I was based in the fish department office in Can tho (one of the largest cities of the Mekong Delta). There the staff offered me the best welcome I ever had for all the internships I had made in my life and I was considered as a fully-fledged employee of the company.


The office in Can Tho was originally created for a continuous project for Metro (German supply company) which wanted to secures the fish chain supply for all the Metro stores in Vietnam. For this project Fresh Studio created a network of farmers, a standard named “Metro Requirement” and a fish transformation factory in Can Tho.


During the first month I had to get use to a totally different way to produce fish and learn the biology of the cultured local species. It was really a chock for me because I was use to work in modern farming system and it was kind a back in the time to see how the farmers grow the local species. I also didn’t know so much about these species (Snakehead fish, Knife fish, Climbing perch…) so it’s of course a plus for me now.


A part of my work was to go on the farms with the aquaculture consultants to check if the farmers respected the standard, give productions advices and also make some trainings for both farmers and consultants about fish farm management.


Then a new project came over in association with the De Heus Company (Dutch animal feed company), the creation of the first R&D services farm, and I have the opportunity to participate to it. I followed the creation of the farm and its design. I made some research with the consultants about all the devices needed for a R&D farm and used the data from the productions farms to find out what type of interesting research could be done on this farm.


Thanks to this internship I had a very concrete discovery of the aquaculture sector in the South Vietnam; it was also my first professional experience in a large company so it allows me to discover it. Furthermore I had the opportunity to work on a big project which is difficult when you’re only an intern in France or in Europe…


Moreover I visited many amazing places, meet a lot of very welcoming people and discovered the real Vietnam which is I think difficult to do when you only go for tourism here. I want to thanks Fresh Studio again for this great opportunity, I will remember this internship for a long time.

Also interesting to read:

Fresh studio assists in sourcing of Pangasius for international airlines

Posted on by Luyen

CAN THO – Pangasius fish is sustainably farmed in the Mekong delta of Vietnam, and a large part of the production sites are now certified for International farming standard such as GlobalGAP, B.A.P, and lately the ASC standard (Aquaculture Stewardship Council) has been introduced.

Pangasius is sold in more than 130 countries, mostly processed into white, skinless, boneless fillets with a neutral taste. It is a nutritious product with a low to moderate fat content and high levels of protein. Pangasius has all the characteristics to be an excellent substitute to the over-fished marine species.

In accordance with its sustainability policy, a leader of the airline catering industry, supplying over 25 million meals to over thirty scheduled carriers has selected Fresh Studio to assist them in the sourcing of their pangasius fillets from Vietnam.

After having advised this catering company during the supplier selection process, Fresh Studio carries out processing supervision, consignment inspection, and product sampling for laboratory analysis, to ensure that the final product matches the required high-end specifications in terms of food safety and quality.

Workshop on improved forage strategies for high yield dairy cows in Vietnam

Posted on by Luyen

HCMC – One of the major limitations to increasing milk production on Vietnamese dairy farms is the quantity as well as the quality of roughage. Using good quality forage and grass in the feed ration, a higher milk production per cow can be realized and a more sustainable and competitive dairy farming sector can be created.

Fresh Studio, together with Wageningen UR – Livestock Research and Nong Lam University (Ho Chi Minh City University of Agriculture and Forestry) co-organized a two-day workshop to identify the best forage/feeding systems on small and medium dairy farms in Vietnam. Emphasis was placed on options to improve the quantity and quality of the dairy cow’s rations that lead to increased milk production per cow.

The workshop was organized on January 17 and 18, 2013 in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and was part of the project “Sustainable Grass and Forage Production for Dairy Development in Vietnam” of Wageningen UR. The workshop consisted of presentations, working group sessions and a field excursion to two dairy farms to learn from practice. Over sixty participants from various organizations (government, processors, feed companies, research institutes, etc.) exchanged knowledge of improved forage strategies, set priorities, and evaluated the most promising systems. In addition, action plans to introduce and promote the most promising options were made.Also interesting to read:

Export coaching program in food ingredient sector of Vietnam

Posted on by Luyen

HCMC – Fresh Studio is assisting CBI to recruit ambitious manufacturers and exporters in the food ingredient sector who are eager to expand their export activities to Europe.

To inform companies about the program, explain in detail about the different modules of the program and to assist them with the application, Fresh Studio organized a two-day information booth in Ho Chi Minh City on January 24 and 25, 2013.

The CBI export coaching program consists of an initial business audit to assess the registered companies on their competence for the European market. After this an action plan is made for the selected companies. The next two modules focus on business development and export capacity building (how to meet European market demands, explore these markets and the development of an export strategy).

The certification module will give companies technical assistance with the process of certification, if needed, to gain access to the European market. Final modules of the program focus on the actual market entry in which companies are assisted to gain marketing experience, get in touch with business contacts, and participate in events such as trade fairs.

The deadline for the first round to apply for the Export Coaching Program for Food Ingredients in Vietnam is March 31, 2013. The program is due to start in September 2013. Applications are judged on a ‘first come first served’ basis.

CBI (Centre for the Promotion of Imports from developing countries) is an Agency of the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs. CBI was established in 1971 in order to support producers and exporters from developing countries to get a foothold in the Dutch market. In 1991 activities were expanded to the EU market. CBI encourages business support organizations in developing countries to improve their capabilities, and acts as ‘matchmakers’ between suppliers and buyers.Also interesting to read:

BopInc and partners publishes: Inclusive marketing research

Posted on by Luyen

BoP Innovation Center (BoPInc) and partners, among others Fresh Studio, rereleased the second publication of a series of five about inclusive business at the Base of the Pyramid (BoP), the poorest socio-economic group in the world.

Understanding the local BoP system and individuals within this system – consumers, producers, entrepreneurs – is fundamental to ensuring the successful development of ‘Inclusive Innovations’. In most cases, traditional marketing tools fail to provide useful market and consumer insights. The novelty of the subject means specific BoP marketing theory and models are yet to be developed.

This publication covers the main challenges, and aims to discover and understand new ways to research the BoP market in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda and Vietnam.


The publication is available through download on the BopInc website

BopInc and partners publishes: Shared value at the Base of the Pyramid

Posted on by Luyen

‘Inclusive Innovation-shared value at the Base of the Pyramid’ is the first publication of a series of five based on experiences and insights from the pilots within the ‘Three Pilot for Pro-Poor Innovation (3P4PPI) program in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda and Vietnam. This program is a close cooperation between BoP Innovation Center (BoPInc) and its partners, among others Fresh Studio.

To accelerate the development of successful and profitable BoP innovations it is necessary to capture and share knowledge and identify issues that impact all sectors and themes. The objective of the ‘3 Pilots for Pro-Poor Innovation’ (3P4PPI) program is to gain more knowledge and experience on market-driven pro-poor innovations through the development of three separate pilots. Throughout this process, learning’s are captured, processed and shared with different organizations interested in and working on inclusive innovations.

This publication sets the scene on inclusive innovation. This is the market-driven development of an innovation along the value chain which includes low-income groups in the process and has impact in a social, economic and ecologically sustainable way. 


This publication highlights the latest insights both in theory and in practice to research the BoP market and introduces main challenges encountered in the pilots


The publication is available through download on the BopInc website

Training yields results

Posted on by Luyen

DALAT – Research and training initiatives are helping Vietnamese farmers produce year-round exportable crops.

Rene van Rensen, R&D manager at Fresh Studio Innovations Asia, speaks to ASIAFRUIT about some of the training projects it has been working on with Vietnamese farmers to help boost their profitability through good agricultural practices.

How does Fresh Studio work with governing bodies in order to maximise funding and other support for its training projects?


Rene van Rensen: For most production-related projects we organise farmer field days to present results and let farmers see these for themselves. At this tage we will also invite local authorities so that they can share the results in their network.

Currently we mainly work with funding from the private sector and national governements outside Vietnam. We would, however, love to make use of the funding Vietnam has received from, for example. the World Bank to implement practical projects at farmer level.

+ Download the complete articleAlso interesting to read:

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