HO CHI MINH CITY—One of the largest egg suppliers and processing companies in South Viet Nam, Vinh Thanh Dat (V.Food), has joined the global cage-free movement by launching their first certified cage-free egg brand in the country. The project is freeing thousands of hens from cages in the first year and will expand in the years to come, with the assistance of Humane Society International (HSI), a global organization working to protect all animals.

As an industry pioneer, V.Food has observed the cage-free movement increasing around the globe. The company management team has a vision to differentiate from the most common industrial way of producing eggs in Viet Nam, where nearly 77 million hens are confined in small, crowded, wire cages every year.

With this project, and as of today, V.Food has become the first producer and processing company to earn the Certified Humane label in Viet Nam, meeting dozens of requirements for the health, nutrition and management of cage-free hens under the Humane Farm Animal Care (HFAC) standards. Consumers will be able to find V.Food’s Cage-free Eggs brand in the largest supermarkets in Ho Chi Minh City soon. These eggs are packaged in paper boxes, differentiating them from other single-use plastic egg boxes already in the market, a further sign of V.Food commitment to corporate social responsibility, and to the community and environment.

The two single-floor, cage-free barns in Dong Nai province, about 100km north of Ho Chi Minh City, house 6,000 hens total, and can bring around 1,5 million cage-free eggs to the market annually. In these barns, hens are free to express their natural behavior, i.e., dust-bathing in rice husk bedding and resting on elevated perches.

“We hope this new brand of certified cage-free eggs will be supported by consumers even though the pricing is higher at the beginning compared to eggs from caged hens that are already in the market. With consumers’ support, the number of hens freed from cages will increase as Viet Nam’s egg production catches up with the regional cage-free trend.” said Mr. Truong Chi Thien, V.Food founder and general director.

Hang Le, farm animal welfare manager, HSI in Viet Nam states: “We are delighted that producers and processing companies are beginning to address the welfare of hens by moving toward cage-free egg production in Vietnam. HSI applauds V.Food’s movement. We are committed to providing support and to ensuring that these and other pioneers have all of the tools and resources they need to make the cage-free future for laying hens a reality. Consumers play a key role in the effort to improve the lives of farm animals, and HSI urges those consumers who purchase eggs, to choose cage-free. This small change means a world of difference to each of those hens.”

HSI’s approach is science based and collaborative. The Farm Animal Welfare department works with companies and producers to support a transition from intensive cage confinement to cage-free housing systems instead. HSI offers a wide range of technical support to producers and egg processing companies such as V.Food,  including peer-to-peer learning, farm visits, study tours and annual technical workshops.

V.Food joins other egg production companies in Southeast Asia as part of the cage-free movement, including Charoen Pokphand Foods, Betagro of Thailand, San Miguel Corporation and Bounty Fresh of the Philippines. This transition will meet the growing demand for cage-free eggs from the global food and hospitality industry. A growing number of food and hospitality companies has adopted cage-free egg procurement policies as part of their corporate social responsibility goals.

Reference in this release to any specific commercial product or service, or the use of any brand, trade, firm or corporation name is for the information of the public, and does not constitute or imply endorsement by Humane Society International or its affiliates of the product or service, or its producer or provider.

ENDS

Media contacts:

• Humane Society International: Phuong Tham: phuongth@hsi.org
• V.Food: Truong Chi Cuong: cuongtc@vinhthanhdat.com.vn