Green Farm: not only interesting because there are many dairy cows…
Before the trip, when asked, most of the children answered that they wanted to go to the farm because they “had never seen a dairy cow before”. However, after the experience, not only did they see the dairy cows with their own eyes, the children also collected a lot of interesting information in a vivid and visual way about the daily activities of an environmentally friendly ecological farm.
The tour group of more than 60 students and parents had a day of experience at the Vinamilk farm in Tay Ninh, which is taking care of nearly 8,000 dairy cows. “Before coming here, I thought the farm would be very hot. However, when I entered the gate, the first thing that caught my eye was the regulating lake and a large green area. The atmosphere at the farm is very mild and pleasant, completely different from my initial thoughts,” said Ms. Hoang Diep, a parent who accompanied the children.
During the trip, the calf care area was where the students stayed the longest. Nguyen Thanh Bao Duy (HCMC) said: “When I arrived here, I felt that the farm was really beautiful, there were things that I did not expect such as a large regulating lake, cooling fans. The calves were also fitted with very modern chips… I was very surprised that so many smart technologies were applied.”
Le Vinh Bao (9 years old, living in Ho Chi Minh City), is a young robot enthusiast, interested in the Lely robot at the dairy cow house: “I was very impressed when I came here because the dairy cows are carefully taken care of, especially there is a Lely robot to feed the cows. The robot is automatically installed to help the cows eat on time, with the right amount of food, and even plays music to help the cows relax while eating. The health of the dairy cows is also monitored by Vinamilk uncles and aunts via an application on the phone.”
Through learning about the farm’s operations, the children have developed a better way of thinking about applying technology to protect the environment. For example, milk for calves to drink will be heated (pasteurized) by heat. This heat is obtained thanks to the biogas system that processes the waste of dairy cows into methane gas. This helps the farm both process the waste of the cows and save electricity, gas, etc. for heating, thereby reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
The children also learned many interesting facts such as: 100% of renewable resources at Vinamilk farms are equivalent to the amount of electricity used for 2 round-trip tram trips from the Earth to the moon, the amount of water for 86 Olympic swimming pools and the amount of carbon neutralization equivalent to 30,000 football fields covered with trees... Thanks to that, Vinamilk fresh milk cartons produced from farms and factories will have less impact on the environment.
The Mega factory left an impression on students not only because of its “huge” scale, capable of producing 10-12 million cartons of milk per day. It is also a factory that applies many modern technologies, is highly automated, and uses green energy to reduce emissions into the environment.
“I was really surprised by the students’ very in-depth questions about technology, robots, and management systems. Moreover, although they are only 13-15 years old, they have shown a clear concern for the environment. I believe that these are future talents, contributing to building more green super factories for Vietnam,” said Mr. Tran Minh Tri, Production Manager, Vietnam Dairy Factory (Binh Duong) after meeting the group of students.
The students listened attentively and took detailed notes about the production process to make a carton of milk at the Vinamilk super factory: from giant milk tanks, to the canning line that produces 6-7 cartons of milk every second, or the smart warehouse that operates more than 27,000 batches of goods with computer control...
The entire production and packaging line is automated, programmed and monitored on a computer system. In particular, the line is capable of detecting and eliminating product boxes that do not meet specifications and standards before being packed into finished product boxes.
Not only were they impressed by how the smart warehouse operates, but they also paid special attention to the information that this warehouse model can help reduce 70% of CO2 emissions compared to traditional warehouses. Vinamilk currently has 5 smart warehouses like this in its factories, including cold storage for products such as yogurt and Probi that need to be kept at a stable cold temperature.
Nguyen Thanh Gia Bao (grade 9, Ngo Quyen Secondary School, Hai Phong) shared that he was very impressed when he learned that the factory's LGV robots can calculate the fastest moving route, helping to save energy and reduce 62% of CO2 emissions compared to traditional forklifts. "The robots operate very precisely, without unnecessary movements, without errors and especially save energy, reducing emissions to the environment. Seeing the robots operating in the factory really excites me and inspires me to pursue my passion for creating and programming environmental protection robots in future competitions," said Gia Bao.
Vinamilk currently manages a system of 14 factories and 14 farms in Vietnam, including 3 Green Farm ecological farms. Pioneering in its commitments to sustainable development, especially in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, Vinamilk has so far had 2 factories and 1 farm certified as Carbon Neutral according to the international standard PAS 2060:2014.
