An Giang Plant Protection committed to transforming the future of farming in Vietnam

Founded in 1993, An Giang Plant Protection Joint Stock Company is the leading distributor and a manufacturer of crop protection chemicals (CPC) in Vietnam.

With a nationwide distribution network of 25 branches and nearly 500 large-sized wholesale agents, the company controls 30 per cent market share of CPC. Since 2010, An Giang has expanded into the rice processing and trading business, with a goal of becoming the leading vertically-integrated agricultural service provider in Vietnam by 2015.

As the result of this strategy, An Giang had five rice factories in operation by the end of 2013 with each factory having the maximum designed processing capacity of 200,000 tonnes of paddy rice per year. In next four years, the domestic leading agricultural company plans to develop 12 rice processing factories serving the total farming area of 316,000 hectares, equivalent to 8.1 per cent of the Mekong Delta’s farming area.

The success of An Giang is based on a vision to provide effective solutions not only to crops but also farmers’ life.

Chris Freund, managing director of fund management firm Mekong Capital – which is a stakeholder in An Giang, said the company was following customer focused development strategy.

“Like other companies in Vietnam such as MobileWorld, Masan or PNJ, An Giang is operating with a similar business principle. The firm listens to its customers and cares about meeting the needs of its customers, and for An Giang, customers are farmers,” said Freud.

“An Giang does not sponsor farmers, what they are doing is about helping farmers improve their health, and assisting them to improve crops’ output, and the long-term sustainability of their farms,” he added.

When many companies are concerned over risks in agriculture sector, a good connectivity with farmers is really a good way for sustainable development. “Some companies just have a two or three year development plan, but An Giang has a strategy for 20 years or even more,” said Freund.

“That is a secret for success of fast growing companies, really care about customers and listen to customers. Help them resolve issues. I met many farmers, and farmers very appreciate the support from An Giang,” he continued.

“Together with the farmers” programme

In order to develop the good connectivity with local farmers, since 2006 An Giang has initiated the programme namely “Together with the farmers”. This programme was designed to supply consulting services with modern scientific and technical solutions for Vietnamese farmers.

A special feature of this programme is the establishment of an agricultural engineer force, named “3 Together”, which is currently risen to over 1,100 agricultural engineers. Those engineers will be directly presence in the rice fields to instruct and assist rice farmers in order to improve rice cultivation techniques for better productivity and quality.

Over the past year, technicians with practical experience always work closely with farmers on 11,960 points, 30 models and 98 technical consulting places. More than 1,100 young and enthusiastic engineers have actually eaten, lived and worked together with farmers in the whole Mekong Delta region, some provinces in the Southeast, Central and Northern Vietnam.

“Eat, live and work together with farmers, we can understand their thoughts, aspiration and requirements in production along with the Vietnamese government, scientists help farmers to achieve the target of ‘bumper crops – better prices’,” the company said in a statement.

In addition, working together with farmers in the fields, An Giang’s engineers can learn valuable experience and share experience in production with farmers. 

This is the programme reallocating profits to farmers through people and specific works. Of course, it also helps An Giang to develop their business through regular discussions with customers.

An Giang in 2010 started to implement the strategy to develop the “rice production chain with sustainable process”. Through the “Together with farmers” programme, the company set up the controlled material areas which provides high quality rice throughout Mekong Delta, with the participation of tens of thousands of farmers under direct technical instruction of 1,000 “3 Together” engineers.

It is the first time that the process of rice cultivation has been put under such close management and examination which ranges from selecting seed varieties, tracing the paddy origins, together with advanced cultivation process.

“With the strong support from the Vietnam government, the trust of Vietnamese farmers and the collaborative relationships with large, prestigiouse strategic partners, An Giang will commit to make steady steps toward the future to sustain its development together with the Vietnam Agriculture, and with Vietnamese farmers,” the company stated.