One year of youth-driven change with Empower Youth4Food Vietnam
Since its launch during the Netherlands Economic Mission to Vietnam in March 2024, the Vietnam Chapter of the Empower Youth4Food (EY4F) Campaign has been on a mission to inspire and empower Vietnamese youth as leaders in sustainable food systems. Over the past year, this vision has become reality through a dynamic array of activities and strategic partnerships that have left a meaningful mark on young people throughout Vietnam.
From gaining hands-on experiences during a field visit at pioneering companies like ShrimpVet and De Heus Animal Nutrition Vietnam to having leading roles at major industry events such as the Green Economy Forum & Exhibition (GEFE) and HortEx expo, the Vietnam Chapter of the Empower Youth4Food (EY4F) Campaign has opened doors for youth to connect, grow, and drive real change. As we have concluded our first year, let’s look back at some of the highlights, and take a look at what lies ahead.
Source: Agroberichten Buitenland. For the original article, please visit their website.
Green Economy Forum and Exhibition 2024
From October 21–23, 2024, EY4F participated in Green Economy Forum & Exhibition (GEFE) in Ho Chi Minh City, organized by EuroCham Vietnam and the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade. This event brought together leaders from business, government, and NGOs to promote sustainability and collaboration. One of the highlights was the Student Day, which attracted over 2,000 students, providing EY4F an excellent platform to engage youth in conversations about sustainable food systems and innovation in agriculture.
EY4F also hosted a session featuring the winning team from our video competition. The winning team, consisting of four students from Can Tho University, received exciting prizes, international recognition in the Netherlands Food Partnership World Food Day event, and access to career opportunities, including a Work Orientation Day at Tepbac, a Vietnamese aquaculture startup, and a scholarship for an e-course from HAS green academy.
Aquaculture Business Forum November 2024
In November, EY4F joined Aquaculture Business Forum "Vietnam and the Netherlands working on practical solutions for sustainable aquaculture in the Mekong Delta" held in Can Tho, the heart of the Mekong Delta. The event focused on advancing sustainable aquaculture, introducing innovative strategies and resources to farmers.
At our booth, Youth Ambassadors showcased youth-led sustainability efforts and engaged visitors with their passion and ideas. Special emphasis was placed on youth engagement in connection with the EY4F campaign during a panel discussion on “Bridging Knowledge to Practice”. Some key takeaways from the event were the critical role of applied education and research in advancing aquaculture and transformative impact of youth involvement in fostering a more sustainable and resilient aquaculture sector.
Company Visit to ShrimpVet
On February 27, 2025, EY4F partnered with the Vietnam Youth Advisory Board, an initiative established under the EU Youth Action Plan 2022 - 2027 framework, to organize an interesting visit to ShrimpVet Vietnam for 16 students and young professionals. Participants toured around the laboratory and farms, gaining first-hand insights into cutting-edge aquaculture research and sustainable shrimp farming.
ShrimpVet, a leader in shrimp health management and a key partner in ShrimpTechVietnam, exemplifies the power of international collaboration and youth engagement in driving industry innovation. Reflecting on the experience, Truong Ba Tung shared: “Company visits like these give students valuable, real-world insights and practical guidance on how to apply their studies to a future career. It’s not just about learning technical skills, but also about building connections and seeing first-hand how innovation and sustainability come together in the industry. Experiences like this can shape a young person’s aspirations and show them what’s possible.”
During HortEx in Ho Chi Minh City in March 2025, with its own booth at the Netherlands Pavilion, EY4F engaged with various potential new industry partners and young professionals who can help us in inspiring the youth to see the possibilities that agriculture offers.
HortEx 2025
Prior to the HortEx, EY4F had the opportunity to attend a courtesy meeting between Dutch horticultural businesses with Lam Dong’s people committee in Da Lat. The meeting served as an important opportunity to introduce the campaign to the local state administrative authorities and explore how the campaign can support knowledge diplomacy and serve as a strategic tool under the Letter of Intent that was signed in October 2024 between the Municipality of Westland and Lam Dong province.
Changemaker Challenge 2025
The Changemaker Challenge, held in the format of a hackathon April 2025, was a key EY4F event and one of the building blocks of the campaign. This challenge is organized by Nuffic Southeast Asia in collaboration with “We Are Changemakers”, a platform dedicated to social and impact-driven entrepreneurs and their stakeholders. Through a two-day online hackathon and skill-building sessions, youth teams tackled real-world cases in sustainable food systems, submitted by EY4F campaign partners Agriterra, Good Tôm and Rijk Zwaan.
The winners - EarthFeast from Tra Vinh University and EcoShrimp from Can Tho University – will receive seed funding from the agriculture team from the Dutch Embassy in Vietnam, mentorship to grow and scale their proposal, and direct entry into the Food Systems Innovation Challenge, organized by Wageningen University & Research and Netherlands Food Partnership. One student and one coordinator from the EarthFeast and Ecoshrimp team will be travelling to Wageningen for the Grand Finals in September 2025 and compete against teams from countries such as Brazil, Bangladesh, Nepal and Kenia. Click here to learn more about the participating teams.
During the Grand Finals, a jury will select the best teams in the Nature-based Solutions in Food Systems Challenge who receive Award money to implement their innovations and get direct access to the incubation programme Youth Food Lab, which is an incubator programme that aims to ensure an increased long-term impact.
“Thanks to the opportunity that the Changemaker Challenge brings to Can Tho University and CTU students, it is really a nice stepping stone for them to grow into a new role - a changemaker for global challenges. By combining different fields of knowledge, nature-based challenged approaches and new leadership skills, Can Tho University and CTU students hope to make a significant contribution to the transformation of the food system,” said Ho Hong Lien, coordinator from CTU.
Looking ahead
Looking ahead
As Empower Youth4Food enters its second year, we are excited to deepen our partnerships, expand our youth ambassador network, and empower even more Vietnamese youth with the skills and opportunities to become changemakers. The winning teams of the Changemaker Challenge, EarthFeast and Ecoshrimp, will develop and test their innovations, which they’ll showcase at the Food Systems Innovation Challenge Grand Finals in Wageningen. We’ll also host a webinar on World Environment Day and share a new success story from a Trial Assistant at Rijk Zwaan on our website. Find out more about our upcoming activities on the EY4F website.
Is your company or educational institution passionate about inspiring youth in Southeast Asia to build a more sustainable food system? Are you interested in connecting with talented Vietnamese students and young professionals? Join us as an EY4F partner and help shape the next generation of changemakers.
This article is republished from Agroberichten Buitenland.
For the original article, please visit their website.