The PAN Group has signed a cooperation agreement with Japanese partners AGRI SMILE and Mitsubishi Research Institute, Inc. to contribute to sustainable agriculture
Vietnam and Japan have significant potential to expand agricultural and food cooperation. Vietnam offers abundant and diverse agricultural and seafood supplies, while Japan has a high demand for safe, high-quality, and traceable food products. Japan’s ageing population, labour shortages in agriculture, and consumer preferences for healthy, sustainable food further reinforce these opportunities. In addition to direct exports, both countries can expand cooperation in deep processing, value-added product development, preservation technologies, and high-tech agriculture.
Acting Minister of Agriculture and Environment Tran Duc Thang shared five key targets that the two parties should focus on implementing to boost the agricultural sector.
- The first thing is to expand agricultural trade cooperation. The two ministries will continue to promote the opening of each country’s agricultural product markets, creating favourable conditions for agricultural, forestry, and fishery trade, for the benefit of producers and consumers of both countries.
- Besides that, it is necessary to build a sustainable agricultural supply chain and bilateral investment linkages. Enterprises of the two countries can cooperate from production, processing, logistics, to distribution to reduce costs, improve quality, and meet the most stringent standards of the Japanese and international markets.
- Developing green agriculture, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and adapting to climate change are also important targets. This is an inevitable requirement for Vietnam in the roadmap towards the goal of net-zero emissions by 2050, and is also a priority of Japan within the ASEAN-Japan Green Cooperation Plan.
- Furthermore, it needs to promote innovation, digital transformation, and agricultural mechanisation. Japan has leading strengths in technology, while Vietnam has a large market and high demand for production modernisation. This combination will create new value for both economies.
- Improving the capacity of farmers and small- and medium-sized enterprises in agriculture is also a key target. This is the key force to realise all policies, so cooperation in training, knowledge transfer, and the formation of new cooperative models should be prioritised.
“The private sector’s cooperation plays an important role in catching these five targets. The two governments will continue to create favourable mechanisms, but it is the enterprises, associations, and cooperatives that are the direct forces to implement, innovate, and lead the market. Today’s forum is a testament to that determination, when the government and enterprises sit together to dialogue, share, and sign specific cooperation agreements,” Thang said.
“With the presence of nearly 100 businessmen from both countries at the event, I believe that the forum will open up many new cooperation opportunities, helping businesses to link in agricultural trade and investment, bringing practical benefits to the people, and to the comprehensive strategic partnership between Vietnam and Japan,” he said.
The PAN Group is a Vietnamese corporation in agriculture and food. Its portfolio includes major companies in agriculture, aquaculture, and packaged foods such as Vinaseed, VFC, Fimex, Aquatex Bentre, Bibica, Lafooco, and 584 Nha Trang.
Japan is a key strategic market and currently the largest export destination for The PAN Group. In 2024, the group achieved consolidated revenue of VND16.1 trillion ($650 million), with exports to Japan reaching nearly $100 million, accounting for 34 per cent of the group’s total export revenue
