Promoting green, clean and healthy lifestyle

Women play a key role in choosing and purchasing food, while many are directly involved in food production and trade. Therefore, providing Women's Union (WU) members and women with the knowledge and skills needed to produce, trade, and select clean and safe food is a practical measure to help promote a green, clean, and healthy lifestyle in the community.

WU members and women from Trang Bom Ward visit a production facility of Cohafood in Trang Dai Ward.

WU organizations at all levels across the city have recently implemented various practical models and activities, helping raise awareness and change consumption habits among WU members and women.

Helping raise women’s awareness of clean food

Taking advantage of the weekend, the Trang Bom Ward WU and the ward's Intellectual Women Chapter organized a field visit for officials, WU members and women to a production facility of Cohafood food production and trading business household (Cohafood) in Trang Dai Ward.

Phu Thi Nga, Head of the WU Chapter in Trang Bom 1 Quarter, said the visit gave her an opportunity to observe firsthand the workshop's layout and the hygienic production process for traditional gio cha (Vietnamese sausage), from preparing ingredients and grinding and seasoning meat to wrapping the sausage in banana leaves and steaming it. She also sampled freshly steamed, hot sausage straight from the cooking equipment. In particular, the facility's owner and employees provided hands-on guidance on wrapping sausage in banana leaves.

According to Nga, the visit was both captivating and practical, helping her understand that producing clean, safe food for consumers requires strict supervision at every stage, from selecting raw materials to processing and storage. "I hope more experiential activities will be organized in the coming time, giving WU members and women opportunities to acquire additional knowledge and skills related to clean food, gradually change their consumption habits and protect the health of their loved ones. At the same time, these activities will create more opportunities for women to identify suitable startup models, contributing to bringing more quality products to the market," said Nga.

Dao Thi Giang, Head of the Intellectual Women Chapter of Trang Bom Ward, said the chapter and the ward's WU had organized several rounds of practical visits and hands-on activities at production facilities. "We aim to create opportunities for WU members and women to gain practical knowledge of production processes, facility operations and food safety requirements, helping them identify suitable startup models. At the same time, we seek to raise their awareness of food safety so they can select and use quality products that are safe for their health," said Giang.

Tran Thi Ha, owner of Cohafood, said the facility wanted to share its experience and help WU members and women gain a clearer understanding of safe food production processes, as well as the conditions and requirements that food production workshops must meet. She also personally shared food safety knowledge with officials, WU members and women from various localities, helping them better understand what constitutes safe food and how to select safe, appropriate food products for their families.

Encouraging quality food production and trade

Women not only play an important role in selecting and consuming food within their families but are also involved in food production and trade. The first WU Congress of Dong Nai Province (now Dong Nai City) for the 2025–2030 term identified improving the quality of WU activities and promoting women's role in communication and advocacy for the production and trade of safe agricultural products and food as one of its key tasks. Accordingly, WU organizations at all levels across the city have implemented numerous measures to encourage and support WU members and women in producing and trading safe, quality products.

Women-owned clean and safe food production facilities receive support from the Dong Nai WU to display and introduce their products at conferences and seminars.

Bui Thi Hanh, Vice Chairwoman of the City WU and Head of the City Women's Affairs Committee, said WU organizations at all levels have incorporated the dissemination of legal regulations and food safety knowledge into their activities for WU members and women. They have encouraged women engaged in food production and trade to pledge not to use prohibited substances, preservatives, additives, pesticides or veterinary drugs not on the approved list. In addition, the WU organizations have promoted various models of safe agricultural production and food production and trade by women to protect community health, implemented programs to support women in developing One Commune, One Product (OCOP) products, and facilitated connections to promote the consumption of clean products.

Notably, in 2026, the Government's Project No. 938 on communication, education, advocacy and support for women in addressing social issues related to women during the 2017–2027 period continued to select food safety as its thematic focus. Since the beginning of the year, particularly during the Action Month for Food Safety, WU organizations at all levels have intensified activities aimed at ensuring food safety.

The Dong Nai WU organized a seminar on measures to improve the quality of its activities and strengthen women's role in communication and advocacy for the production and trade of safe agricultural products and food. The seminar put forward numerous measures to enhance the WU's role in raising awareness and responsibility regarding the importance of safe agricultural production and food production and trade for the health of families and communities, thereby contributing to improving public health in the new situation. The City WU also organized an online contest entitled “Dong Nai women learn about food safety”, attracting more than 7,500 registered participants and nearly 9,800 entries.

At communes and wards, particular emphasis has been placed on communication and advocacy activities encouraging WU members and women to engage in safe food production and trade. Hoang Lan Anh, Vice Chairwoman of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee of Dong Xoai Ward and Chairwoman of the ward's WU, said the ward's WU has made extensive use of social media platforms to disseminate knowledge of food safety, clean production processes and effective business models. The union has also promoted the key role of chapter heads and typical members in communication and advocacy activities. At the same time, it has coordinated with relevant agencies to conduct direct communication activities for food business households, organized visits for WU members and women to learn about typical safe food production and business models, while developing pilot models to support communication and advocacy efforts encouraging WU members and women to adopt clean consumption practices, safe food processing, production and trade.

Through the active participation of WU organizations at all levels, awareness among WU members and women of the production, trade and consumption of clean, safe products has gradually improved. These efforts have helped affirm the contributions of WU members and women to sustainable community development while spreading the message of a green, clean and healthy lifestyle for a healthy community.

Ensuring food safety is a regular, long-term task requiring the joint efforts of authorities at all levels, sectors, businesses, and every WU member and woman, thereby contributing to building a culture of safe production, trade and consumption to protect the health of individuals, families and the community.

Le Thi Thanh Loan, Member of the Dong Nai City Party Committee,

Vice Chairwoman of the City Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee, and Chairwoman of the City WU

By Nga Son – Translated by Minh Hong, Thu Ha