In a conference on global refrigeration supply, Appel said that the cooling and freezing technology also helps increase trade among countries.

He called for private and public sectors as well as scientists to focus on seeking and implementing strategic and practical measures to reduce food wastefulness in Vietnam and the Southeast Asia.

Statistics showed that only 10 percent of foodstuff and farm produce in the world is preserved with cooling and freezing systems.

Meanwhile, Julien Brun, a French expert, said that as an agricultural country with a rapid economic growth, Vietnam has faced food and agricultural product losses as well as difficulties in logistics management for the refrigeration supply chain.

Vietnamese agricultural experts held that small production scale is the major reason behind food loss and wastefulness in Vietnam, along with high logistics cost at about 21-25 percent of the GDP each year.

They stressed the need for active engagement of all sides in researching and evaluating opportunities and solutions on the management of the supply system in order to overcome agricultural product loss.

Nguyen Duc Loc, Director of the Vietnam Centre for Agricultural and Rural Policy and Strategy, said that the restructuring of the agricultural sector has focused on expanding production scale, developing the co-operative economy and strengthening chain connectivity with the stronger engagement of the private sector.

The sector has also increased the application of processing technology for higher value, he added.

The conference on global refrigeration supply 2018 was held in Ho Chi Minh City on March 7.