Transportation and storage are still difficult problems when selling agricultural products online, especially fresh agricultural products
Recently, during TikTok Shop’s mid-month promotion at the end of May, TikToker Thien Nhan – a content creator from Dong Thap with a large number of followers – had a large livestream session (Mega Live) was extremely successful in closing orders for a series of products, of which the “hottest” product was durian when users kept asking to buy it because of the limited sales volume – only 1.2 tons.
It sold loudly but…
However, just a few days later, TikToker Thien Nhan had to post a clip to apologize and refund a series of customers because the durian was damaged. Therefore, with the remaining durians in the garden, Thien Nhan said he will sell wholesale at the garden and not retail online anymore because of the difficulty in preserving ripe durians to reach customers.
Previously, at a conference in Ho Chi Minh City, Mr. Nguyen Khanh Toan, in charge of Government Relations of TikTok Vietnam, also told about the case of a livestream selling fresh durian with the participation of 15 content creators (KOLs, KOCs) in 20 minutes brought in sales of 1.2 billion VND but then the shop was locked.
The reason is because there were too many orders, the sales unit did not deliver the goods to customers as described, so they received many negative feedback. “Because this is retail, the seller needs to prepare adequate supplies, pack the goods according to standards and deliver promptly to all customers within the specified time, not as simple as wholesale” – Mr. Toan noted.
Also according to Mr. Toan, selling agricultural products, especially fresh agricultural products, is the most difficult when doing business online because of the thin profit margin and many complex requirements in delivery.
In addition, according to some sellers who are owners of agricultural businesses and cooperatives, complying with the policies of the platforms is relatively difficult. “Building a sales channel is difficult, the risk of being “beaten” for violations and having the channel locked is even more difficult” – many people reflected.
Difficult problem posed
Mr. Khuc Thanh Tu (hometown of Moc Chau, Son La province) – a “hot” TikToker known as Tu Nong San – admitted that trading agricultural products online is difficult but has great potential because of high market demand.
Some agricultural cooperatives have hired personnel specializing in online retail and brought good results in terms of sales and promotion effectiveness. “If it were easy, anyone could do it, then competition would be very harsh” – Mr. Tu frankly.
Currently, Tu is selling fresh fruits and vegetables with a long natural preservation time such as Palermo peppers (giant sweet peppers), grapefruit, dried bamboo shoots and some other processed foods.
From personal experience, Tu said that to sell agricultural products on e-commerce platforms and livestreams effectively, there needs to be a combination of professional sellers and gardeners. “Growers selling directly is great, but they are not used to retail and the goods are not consistent because they depend on the season” – Mr. Tu analyzed.
According to Mr. Le Huu Thien, Director of Binh Loi Yellow Apricot Cooperative (Binh Chanh district, Ho Chi Minh City), recently, some cooperative members have set up channels and livestreams to promote and sell products via social networks to promote consumption. “However, this activity is still mainly spontaneous, only some cooperative members are good at technology, good at speaking, and know how to run advertisements to sell products.Farmers really need support to make this activity more professional and reach many new customers” – Mr. Thien recommended.
Don’t just close the order and you’re done
Ms. Nguyen Thi Anh Lan, Director of Tuong Lai Seafood Cooperative (Can Gio district, Ho Chi Minh City), said that recently the cooperative has researched and developed many very good products that are suitable for online sales channels. “This is a very potential field, but investment must be made to get effective results.
Previously, we also put products on online markets, but because we did not invest much, we did not reach our sales goals. This time, the cooperative decided to hire personnel specializing in this field to promote promotion and sales to increase sales” – Ms. Lan said.
Mr. Nguyen Huu Hoai Phu, Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Ho Chi Minh City, informed that currently, agricultural products in Ho Chi Minh City consumed through the floor only account for about 1% of total output, many agricultural product production units are still very confused with online consumption forms.
“Agricultural products sold through the platform help local agricultural products reach the whole country, even globally. We will coordinate with relevant units to organize in-depth training classes for farmers, cooperatives, businesses and OCOP (One Commune One Product) subjects know how to put goods on e-commerce platforms, how to make videos, livestream… ” – Mr. Phu said.
According to an e-commerce expert, before deciding to invest in selling on a certain platform, sellers need to research whether that platform is suitable for the product they intend to sell or not.
In addition, selling via livestream is only a support for consumption, not a main sales channel. When participating in the livestream, you need to carefully prepare the goods, packaging, and delivery to ensure the product is of the highest quality when it reaches the user, not just finalizing the order.
CASS – IS THE SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM
CASS is the first unit specializing in preserving fresh fruit on a large scale in Vietnam. We apply controlled atmosphere – CA to help prolong the freshness of agricultural products 2 – 4 times compared to current cold storage conditions.
By applying Controlled Atmosphere – CA in preserving fresh agricultural products. CASS contributes to helping processing businesses solve challenges: Extending storage time while maintaining freshness, large storage capacity, reducing cross-contamination, fruit rot and weight loss. .
In addition, the CASS storage system combines Controlled Atmosphere – CA technology and the ASRS robot system to provide a smart storage solution for agricultural products. Increasing storage time will help extend sales time in both online and offline agricultural business. At the same time, maintaining the quality of agricultural products after preservation not only reduces losses but also contributes to improving the value of agricultural products, as well as enhancing reputation in the business market.
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