Research of the status of pig farms in Đồng Nai and Hà Nội provinces

01/16/2026

Sustainable Food Systems Ireland (SFSI) under the Ireland Vietnam Agrifood Partnership (IVAP) have been working with the National Institute of Animal Sciences (NIAS), Vietnam and Biocheck.UGent delivering an assessment and analysis of the current status of pig farm production and requirements for future improvements in Đồng Nai and Hà Nội provinces. This work has so far involved 72 pig farms across the two regions, from backyard - household up to indoor commercial farms and used the ADKAR (an acronym for Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, and Reinforcement) methodology. For each visited farmer, we developed a profile, to allow researchers to identify which aspects of a farmer’s attitudes and beliefs support or hinder the implementation of biosecurity measures. This was then compared to biosecurity implementation practices using the Biocheck.UGent methodology to assess whether high ADKAR scores reflect comprehensive biosecurity implementation.

The biosecurity value chain of these farms reveals multiple risk factors related to the control of imported breeding stock, semen sourcing, pig transportation, feed, water, and farm materials, as well as human movement, herd health management, and pest control. While farmers show strong motivation to improve biosecurity, they can be limited in their capacity to implement changes effectively. Large, company-led farms consistently demonstrate stronger biosecurity performance while in contrast, smaller and household farms face greater challenges. 

While we have not yet completed this valuable work, initial findings suggest that targeted, practical, and scale-sensitive interventions, focusing on awareness, skills, and on-farm capacity, are key to turning farmers’ motivation into effective and lasting biosecurity practices. Such insights help target communication and advisory efforts more effectively, ultimately promoting improved biosecurity practices across Vietnam.

#sustainablefoodsystems #biosecurity #biosecurity #disease #prevention #collaboration #onehealth #animalhealth #behaviour