Helvetas, the Swiss Association for International Cooperation, has started a five-year program to develop organic and fair-trade cocoa in Vietnam. The project aims to increase the living standard of the rural population in the southern regions of Vietnam via improved social, economic and environmental conditions related to agriculture. The project sites are Tien Giang and Ben Tre provinces of the Mekong River Delta Region.
The Earth Net Foundation started its consultancy work for this project since January 2010 when it was contracted to make field studies and then design a comprehensive internal control system (ICS) for the UTZ and organic cacao producer groups. Then a training workshop was organized in November-December 2010 to help and guide stakeholders about how to set up the ICS.
In 2011, the two producer groups started inmpleming the ICS for UTZ and got the UTZ certification in late 2011. In June 2012, ENF was contracted to provide consultancy supports to run a practical training for ICS staff to implement the ICS for organic agriculture as the producer groups plan to apply for organic certification by the end of 2012 or early 2013.
