undergraduate

 

Vietnam is a world-leading country in the production and export of agricultural products and seafood. The state’s production of processed products, however, has not yet received the necessary investments for its optimal exploitation. The main reasons are limitations of technological development, equipment, and in particular the scarcity of human resources in food processing with modern skills and knowledge. As one of the fields the Government gave priority to for its development until 2025 with vision to 2035, Food Industry has a rapidly and unceasingly increasing demand for human resources.

Food industry potential in Vietnam

 

Besides providing its 97 million people with clean and safe foodstuffs, Vietnam also exports millions of containers a year with all kinds of fresh and tasty agricultural products and seafood. Contributing importantly to this are food industry specialists. From fresh foodstuffs — fish, shrimp, meat — to dairy, wine, beer, and sodas, to starchy foods - cereals, flour - all need modern processing technology for long and safe storage.

 

Food Industry students performing experiments in DTU’s modern training rooms and laboratories

 

So far, however, we have only been focusing on the export of agricultural products and seafood in unprocessed form without much regard for and little in-depth development of another more promising market: processed agricultural products. The recent impact of Covid-19 has given many countries, including Vietnam, deeper insight into this issue. Covid-19 has given export trouble, causing parcels of fresh agricultural products to lose their tastiness after lying in wait at border gates, in harbors, or in airports for too long. Social distancing, meanwhile, has made it impossible for the people working many countries’ food industries to work in full force like normally, and countries are limiting their imports of raw materials due to a lack of workers.

 

The world is currently fond of processed food, ready to be consumed upon purchase. This forces the countries that used to be strong in the export of unprocessed and fresh food to shift their modes of production and export to meet modern demand. This is why high-quality food industry human resources in industrial processing are increasingly being searched for, to meet long-term and sustainable export plans for the future.

 

Food Industry training: anticipating the trend of integration

 

To meet the trend of people choosing healthy, safe, and convenient food products, the DTU major in Food Industry combines the newest lines of research and experimentation in food processing which enjoy domestic and international interest with subjects aimed at guiding students to the development of creative and highly applicable ideas.

 

Lecturers and students of the DTU major in Food Industry have recently started producing processed foods and preserving several local agricultural products, based on hygiene and nutrition, for consumers’ health, including: seafood; che, tea; sweet potatoes, and so on. 

 

Food Industry students performing experiments in DTU’s modern training rooms and laboratories

 

To support its students’ research activities, DTU has created a high-quality academic program to provide students during their studies with all necessary knowledge and skills to:

 

• apply technological processes to actual production conditions at food production facilities;

• check and assess food quality and develop new food products;

• design, develop, and apply technological processes to actual food packaging production;

• design and conduct food industry experiments;

• design food processing and storage;

• operate and manage food production and processing facilities;

• ensure food quality, hygiene, and safety for the community.

 

In addition, DTU students also receive in-depth training in packaging technology and food packaging. This is what makes the difference between Food Industry studies at DTU and the same major at other universities.

 

To help students become acquainted with food processing, production, and storage as well as with food analysis and food safety assessment early on, DTU’s modern laboratories are always open for them to do research and training. In addition to basic equipment for the analysis of physicochemical and microbiological indicators in the laboratories of the Faculty of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, DTU students of Food Technology can also make use of other university laboratories, such as the ones for biology, chemistry, and biochemistry research, those of the Center for Molecular Biology, and the laboratories and practice rooms of the Faculty of Pharmacy.

 

To obtain experience and orient their future careers, during their studies, students also regularly visit businesses, such as:

 

• the PVL brewery in Danang,

• the Acecook factory,

• the Dong Giang che factory,

• local factories of agricultural products and seafood,

 

After graduation, students can continue with higher studies or start working at State agencies, domestic companies, or multinationals active in production, processing, product development, food packaging, quality control and assurance, management of food and nutrition laws, nutrition, and so on.

 

Great job opportunities for Bachelors in Food Industry

 

Demand for Food Industry human resources in Vietnam is projected to continuously and strongly increase in the next five to ten years. This is why ever more enterprises are massively recruiting people with a thorough and high-quality training to develop diverse products and to ensure food safety, to meet demand from society.

 

Graduates can work at:

 

- companies specializing in trade, import, and export of food products;

- food services establishments;

- food safety and hygiene departments from national to local in science and technology, agriculture and rural development, industry and trade, and health;

- departments related to quality assurance, nutrition, testing, etc.at health and preventive medicinecenters;

- research institutes in food industry such as the Instituteof Nutrition and theInstitute for Food Control, and so on.

 

(Media Center)