After securing a firm foothold in such choosy markets as Europe, Japan, the US and Australia, An Phat Holdings started to market its AnEco biodegradable bags in their home market in 2018 with a desire to promote green consumption in Vietnam. 

An Phat Holdings saw the inevitable trend of using biodegradable products instead of plastic bags years ago, according to Nguyen Le Hang, deputy director and director for sustainable development of An Than Bicsol, a member of An Phat Holdings.

Almost ten years ago, An Phat worked with a Vietnamese organization to study biodegradable plastic bags but this project failed. The company then developed its own project in 2013 to manufacture biodegradable plastic products from materials imported from Germany.
 

AnEco’s workshop manufacturing biodegradable garbage bags. AnEco’s multiple-use bag manufacturing workshop. AnEco biodegradable bags are made from corn starch and bioplastic resin imported from Europe, which are safe and environmentally friendly. The final stage of making biodegradable forks. Safe and environmentally friendly bioplastic resin imported from Europe. AnEco products meet European bioplastic standards.

In 2015, An Phat exported the first biodegradable plastic bags, which were immediately welcomed in Europe and Japan. The company is currently exporting to 120 countries worldwide.

An Phat Holdings is planning to build a plant to manufacture wholly biodegradable materials in Vietnam with a designed capacity of 24,000 tons/year. Construction of the plant, worth 100 million US dollars, is scheduled to start in 2020 and will be completed in 2022.

AnEco is a brand of wholly compostable plastic bags which turn into water, CO2 and humus within one year after being buried without requiring any industrial treatment process.

AnEco bags are manufactured with advanced technology and meet European bioplastic standards. At present, there are only around ten manufacturers in the world meeting these standards.

AnEco bags are also the first product in Vietnam to receive TUV Vincotte’s OK Compost Home certification, one of the strictest certifications of biodegradable plastic products.

In November 2018, AnEco biodegradable bags made their debut on the shelves of Vinmart chains nationwide, marking An Phat’s expansion into the domestic market.

To change Vietnamese consumers’ habit of using plastic products, An Phat has marketed AnEco bags with diverse designs which can be used as ordinary bags.

To raise public awareness about green consumption, the company has also launched campaigns against plastic waste, including Earth Day Compostable 2019 which lasted six days nationwide and involved major supermarket chains like BigC, Aeon and Intimex.

AnEco’s biodegradable bags, straws, spoons and forks are all made from safe and environmentally friendly materials.

In June, the company contributed 51% of the capital of Top Leaf Company, a South Korean manufacturer of biodegradable materials. This helped An Phat secure a stable material supply and cut production costs by 30-40%.

Story: Thao Vy - Photos: Tran Cong Dat