Promote Public - Private Partnership to develop sustainable potato growing areas

On the morning of September 29, 2020, PepsiCo Foods Viet Nam cooperated with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) of Dak Lak province to hold a meeting on a PPP project to expand high-yield potato growing areas in Dak Lak. The meeting was attended by leaders of International Cooperation Department/Secretariat of the Partnership for Sustainable Agriculture in Viet Nam (PSAV), Department of Crop Production, Department of Plant Protection, national Agricultural Extension Center - MARD, Dak Lak DARD, PepsiCo Viet Nam and representatives of related partners.

In Viet Nam, PepsiCo has invested more than 500 million USD in the last 5 years, attracting about 3,000 employees, of which 99.8% are Vietnamese. The company also cooperates with more than 580 farmers in Lam Dong, supporting R&D to develop potato varieties suitable to local conditions, as well as farming techniques to increase productivity and improve income. According PepsiCo, the project's potato productivity has increased 4 times, from 5.6 tons/ha to 24.3 tons/ha, supplying 70% of input materials for domestic Poca snack production. In addition, the project also piloted drip and sprinkler irrigation, saving 1.4 million m3 of irrigation water this year.

In the next 5 years, PepsiCo aims to increase the harvested potato production by 3 times, reaching 30,000 tons/year, aiming to localize 100% of the supply for the company's local production. Along with that is the expansion of growing areas, linking with 2,500 - 3,000 farmers participating in the project, and increasing productivity by 20% through developing potato varieties suitable to local farming conditions. Therefore, PepsiCo has a strategy to expand high-yield potato growing areas in Dak Lak province with a total estimated area of ​​200 hectares, expected output of 5,000 tons/crop/year, expected household income of 90 million VND/ha. The project will begin from September - November 2020, and first crop expected is March 2021.

PepsiCo has been an active member of the PPP Task Force on Fruits and Vegetables under the Partnership for Sustainable Agriculture in Viet Nam (PSAV) since 2010. Over the past 10 years, through Public-Private Partnerships, PepsiCo has worked closely with more than 120 Public and Private partners of PSAV in Viet Nam to develop and sustainably supply many key agricultural products (including vegetables and fruits), promoting commercial development, opening up opportunities to improve the lives of thousands of farmers and local communities, contributing to promote sustainable agricultural development in the country.