The Role of Proximity and Standards in Guaranteeing Vegetable Safety in Vietnam1

Abstract

In Asia, the growth of purchasing power, especially in cities, come together with rising consumers' concerns for food safety. We investigate two mechanisms of food safety assurance, i.e., proximity (between farmers and consumers), and certification based on standards. The literature suggests the following hypotheses: (i) proximity in food chains comes together with low farmers' cost for quality assurance, but also limited scope of operation; and (ii) “abstract” expertise systems that form the basis of standardization imply high costs at the expense of inclusion of small‐scale farmers, but enable large scope of operation; the impact on consumers' trust is controversial. The paper is a preliminary attempt to test these hypotheses on the situation of vegetable safety assurance in Northern Vietnam. The authors' fieldwork brings to the fore a variety of standards and quality assurance systems: safe vegetable certification by the Plant Protection Department, based on—quite lax—public standards and control; it is in some cases supplemented by internal control systems; VietGap and AseanGaps based on good agricultural practices and HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point); and participatory guarantee systems (PGSs) for organic vegetables. The hypotheses are partly confirmed. One interesting outcome relates to the combination of systems based on relational proximity, expert systems, and labeling on the origin of vegetables as enhancing consumers' trust and farmers' commitments. The paper concludes with recommendations in terms of policy and research.

Les systèmes alimentaires aux défis de la crise de la Covid-19 en Afrique : enseignements et incertitudes

“…Les mesures de restriction imposées dans différents pays (fermetures de marchés, limitation des déplacements, etc.) ont pour effet secondaire de possiblement affaiblir ces relations de proximité et de faire peser un risque sur le respect des contrats et de la qualité, au détriment des acteurs et actrices de ces filières parfois qualifiées d'« informelles » et peut-être au bénéfice des filières plus intégrées et standardisées (Moustier, 2013 ;Moustier et Nguyen, 2015). Il existe un réel risque de marginalisation et d'augmentation des inégalités à l'intérieur des filières ou tout au moins de reconfiguration entre les différents acteurs des filières d'approvisionnement alimentaires.…”

Food consumption in the Canary Islands: nutritional implications of food imports and local production

“…Proximity foods can have comparative advantage in the case of fresh perishable products, while in the case of imported products, characteristics such as energy concentration and the greater durability of processed products act as mechanisms to overcome greater distances and reduce transportation costs [ 19 ]. Therefore, the relative weight of processed foods in a population’s diet can have an impact on the final composition of the diet in terms of the relative weights of certain food groups and introduce distortions regarding the recommendations for a healthy diet, though processed foods can also mean access to a more or less varied and affordable food basket.…”