Symposium Program
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​Tuesday 14th November
Time Event Speaker/Moderator
7:45-8:15 Arrival and Registration
8:15 Official welcome (5 min) Dr. Nguyen Anh Phong, Deputy Director General, Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development (IPSARD)
8:20 Opening remarks (10 min) Mr. Phung Duc Tien, Deputy Minister, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD)
8:30 Opening remarks (10 min) H.E. Andrew Goledzinowski, Australian Ambassador to Vietnam
8:40-8:50 Official Photographs

​Session 1: Current beef cattle industry, markets and trade situation, priorities, and outlook ​
​Chairs: Dr Pham Kim Dang, Deputy Director General, Department of Livestock Production (DLP) and Assoc. Prof. Dominic Smith, Griffith Asia Institute (GAI), Griffith University
Time Event Chair/Moderator/Speaker
8:50-10:00 Current beef cattle industry, markets, and trade situation, priorities, and outlook (80 min) Chairs: Dr Pham Kim Dang, Deputy Director General, Department of Livestock Production (DLP) and Assoc. Prof. Dominic Smith, Griffith Asia Institute (GAI), Griffith University
8:50 Strategic priorities for growing and modernizing Vietnam’s beef cattle sector (10 min) Dr Pham Kim Dang, Deputy Director General, Department of Livestock Production (DLP)
9:00 Navigating an uncertain future. Opportunities to strengthen collaboration and trade in the beef cattle sector (10 min) Mr. Tony Harman. Counsellor (Agriculture). Australian Embassy, Hanoi.
9:10 Sector panel session - Recent drivers and trends in beef cattle markets and trade in the Asia region – outlook and implications. (50 min) Panel moderator – Assoc. Prof. Dominic Smith, GAI Griffith University
  • Assoc. Prof. Hoang Kim Giao, President, Vietnam Ruminant Husbandry Association (VinaRUHA)
  • Mr. Tran Bao Son, General Director, Thaco Agri Company
  • Mr. Mark Harvey Sutton, CEO Australian Live Export Council (ALEC)
  • Mr. Wayne Collier, CEO LiveCorp
  • Mr. Spencer Whitaker, SEA Market Manager, Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA)
  • Representative, Laos, Department of Livestock and Fisheries (DLF) of Laos PDR
10:00 Launch of Vietnam’s National Animal Welfare Standards (10 min) Department of Animal Health and Meat and Livestock Australia
10:30 Morning tea(20 min)
Session2: Meeting net zero emission targets in the beef cattle sector
Chair: Assoc. Prof. Le Thi Thanh Huyen, Head of Department of Livestock System and Environment Research, National Institute of Animal Science (NIAS) and Assoc. Prof. Dominic Smith, GAI, Griffith University ​
Time Event Chair/Moderator
10:30 Brief overview of session – importance, context, and purpose (5 min) Assoc. Prof. Dominic Smith, GAI, Griffith University
10:35 Net zero emission targets, accounting and activities in the beef and livestock sector in Vietnam (15 min) Assoc. Prof. Le Thi Thanh Huyen, Head of Department of Livestock System and Environment Research, (NIAS)
10:50 Carbon Neutral by 2030 – a road map for the Australian red meat sector (15 min) (remote) Dr. Margaret Jewel. Program Manager- Environmental Sustainability. Meat and Livestock Australia
11:05 Meeting the climate challenge. Innovations to reduce emissions and achieve net zero in the Australia-Vietnam beef sector (15 min) (remote) Prof. Ben Hayes, Research Director, Zero-Net Emissions CRC, Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation (QAAFI)
11:20 Funding net zero and nature positive. Opportunities for financing in the beef cattle (15 min) Mr. Guy Williams, Executive Director, Pollination Group
11:35 Questions and comments (25 min) Assoc. Prof. Le Thi Thanh Huyen, Head of Department of Livestock System and Environment Research, (NIAS)
12:00-13:00 Lunch
Session 3: Profitable forage and fattening systems
Chair: Dr. Pham Kim Dang, Deputy Director General, DLP​
Time Event Speaker/Moderator
13:00 Session overview, context, and importance. Dr. Rodd Dyer, FocusGroupGo Asia Pacific
13:05 Commercial cattle feeding challenges and innovations in Vietnam (20 min) Mr. Hoang Van Hoang, Director, HTL Company Limited
13:25 Insights from 30 years of cattle feeding and feedlot management in Indonesia (20 min) (remote) Mr. Greg Pankhurst, Feedlot consultant, Queensland Livestock Exporters Association, Frontier International PTY Limited
13:45 Industry panel – Managing challenges in the commercial fattening and feedlot sector in Vietnam (55 min) Panel moderators: Dr Pham Kim Dang, Deputy Director General, DLP, and Dr. Rodd Dyer, FocusGroupGo Asia Pacific
  • Mr. Vuong Huu Dung, Deputy Director, Phu Lam Corporation
  • Mr. Tran Van Thang, Director, Thang Loi Development and Trade Ltd.
  • Ms. Pham Thi Phuong, Vu Yen Breeding Import and Export Company Limited
  • Mr. Nguyen Viet Dung, Import Officer, Hoa Phat Agriculture Development Joint Stock Company
  • Dr. Ha Thuy Hanh, Vice President of the Vietnam Farming and Agricultural Enterprises Association (VFAEA)
14:40 Questions and discussion (20 min) Dr. Pham Kim Dang, Deputy Director General, DLP, and Dr. Rodd Dyer, FocusGroupGo Asia Pacific
15:00-15:20 Afternoon tea (20 min)
Session 4: Profitable forage and fattening systems II 
​Chair: Dr. Pham Kim Dang, Deputy Director General, DLP
Time Event Chair/Moderator
15:20 Profitable feeding strategies for low-input cattle fattening (20 min) Prof. Dennis Poppi, University of Queensland and Dr. Dinh Van Tuyen, De Heus Company Limited
15:40 Recent innovations in forage production and preservation for beef cattle fattening systems in Vietnam (15 min) Assoc. Prof. Le Thi Thanh Huyen, Head of Department of Livestock Systems and Environment Research, (NIAS) and Dr. Melanie Blanchard, CIRAD
15:55 Utilization of agro-byproducts and supplements for commercial feeding and fattening in Vietnam (15 min) Dr. Nguyen Thi Vinh, Department of Animal Husbandry, VNUA
16:10-17:00 Mini-panel session – insights from cattle producers and exporters Moderator: Dr. Rodd Dyer, FocusGroupGo Asia Pacific
16:10 Feeding strategies for maximizing growth and performance of cattle for live-export markets (10 min) Dr. Steve Petty, Clean Agriculture, and International Tourism, TH Group .
16:20 Feeding for profitability – live-export and feedlot markets in central Queensland (10 min) Mr. Ryan Olive, Raglan Live-export yards and feedlot, Private sector
16:30 Questions and discussion (30 min) Dr. Pham Kim Dang, Deputy Director General, DLP and Dr. Rodd Dyer, FocusGroupGo Asia Pacific
17:00 Close
Wednesday 15th November

Session 5: Improving breeding and genetics in Vietnam.
Chairs: Dr. Pham Doan Lan, Deputy Director General, NIAS and Dr. Rodd Dyer, FocusGroupGo Asia Pacific 
Time Event Speaker/Moderator
8:15 Session overview, context, and importance (5 min) Dr. Rodd Dyer, FocusGroupGo Asia Pacific
8:20 National cattle breeding and genetic improvement strategies and opportunities in Vietnam (15 min) Mrs. Pham Kim Dung, Head of Department of Animal Breeding and Genetics, DLP
8:35 Advancing Meat-Oriented Beef Breeding Formulas and Some Recommendations for the Future of Beef Cattle Development in Vietnam (15 min). Dr. Phung The Hai, Deputy Director, Vietnam Ruminant Breeding Center (Vinalica)
8:50 Applications of genetic and breeding technologies and lessons from Australia (20 min) Prof. Wayne Pitchford, School of Animal and Veterinary Science, University of Adelaide
9:10 How can genomic tools support breeding and genetic improvement in Vietnam? (20 min) (Remote) Prof. Ben Hayes, Centre Director, Animal Science, Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation
9:30 Questions and discussion (40 min) Chair: Dr. Pham Doan Lan, Deputy Director General, NIAS and Dr. Rodd Dyer, FocusGroupGo Asia Pacific
10:10-10:30 Morning Tea
Session 6: Applied approaches to breeding and genetic improvement
Chair: Dr. Pham Doan Lan, Deputy Director General, NIAS and Dr. Rodd Dyer, FocusGroupGo Asia Pacific
Time Event Speaker/Moderator
10:30 Evaluating genotypes for beef cattle productivity and market specifications. A case study from northern Australia (15 min) Mr. Tim Schatz, Head of Livestock. Northern Territory Department of Industry, Tourism and Trade
10:45 Importing productive breeding cows. A strategy for genetic improvement in Vietnam? (15 min) Mr. Neil McDonald, Beef cattle consultant
11:00 Maximizing genetic gain by improving reproductive performance of productive breeders (15 min) Dr Kieren McCosker, Senior Research Fellow, Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, Queensland University
11:15 Industry and expert panel – new technologies and approaches for breeding and genetic improvement in Vietnam (40 min) Moderator: Dr. Pham Doan Lan, Deputy Director General, NIAS and Dr. Rodd Dyer, FocusGroupGo Asia Pacific
  • Assoc. Prof. Le Thi Thuy, Chief of International Cooperation Department, VinaRUHA.
  • Dr. Ngo Dinh Tan, Director, Ba Vi Cattle and Forage Research Centre, NIAS
  • Mr. Do Van Huong, Director, Breeding and Genetics, Thaco Agri
  • Mr. Tran Van Luyen, Chairman, Quang Ninh Livestock Breeding Company
  • Ms. To Tue Lang, Director, Asia Pacific Dairy Company
11:55 General questions and discussion (20 min) Dr. Pham Doan Lan, Deputy Director General, NIAS and Dr. Rodd Dyer, FocusGroupGo Asia Pacific
12:15-13:15 Lunch
Session 7: Modernising processing, value adding and integrity systems 
Chair: Representative from  National Agro-Forestry-Fisheries Quality Assurance Department (NAFIQPM) 
Time Event Speaker/Moderator
13:15 Session overview, context, and importance (5 min) Mr. Spencer Whitaker, Market Development Manager, MLA
13:20 Strategies, priorities, and opportunities for modernizing beef processing, food safety, and value adding (15 min) Representative from NAFIQPM
13:35 Improving meat quality and adding value in beef processing – technical innovations and opportunities (15 min) Mr. Greg Butler Consultant, Meat and Livestock Australia
13:50 Improving animal welfare and integrity systems in beef cattle supply chains (15 min) Dr. Michael Patching, Director, Alta Food and Agriculture Company
14:05 Industry panel – challenges and innovations in improving beef processing – meat quality, food safety, and value adding (45 min) Moderator: Mr. Nguyen Huy Tien, Business Development Manager, Meat and Livestock Australia
  • Representative from Pacow International Company
  • Mr. Nguyen Dang Phu, Deputy General Director, Vissan
  • Representative from Đông Thành
  • Representative from VinaBeef-Sojitz
14:50 Questions and discussion (20 min) Mr. Nguyen Huy Tien, Business Development Manager, Meat and Livestock Australia
15:10-15:30 Afternoon tea
Session 8: Key stakeholder messages and next steps for collaboration 
Chairs: Dr. Pham Kim Dang, Deputy Director General, DLP and Assoc. Prof. Dominic Smith, GAI, Griffith University 
Time Event Speaker/Moderator
15:30 Key messages, opportunities and recommended next steps for collaboration from key stakeholders (3-5 min each) (30 min) Priorities and next steps for technical collaboration, research, industry, and trade in the beef between Vietnam and Australia (G2G and B2B priorities):
  • Representative from DAH
  • Assoc. Prof. Hoang Kim Giao, President, VinaRUHA
  • Mr. Ha Van Thang, President, Vietnam Agribusiness Council
  • Representative from Australian Cattle Industry Sector
  • Representative from the Government of Lao PDR
  • Mr. Tony Harman, Counsellor (Agriculture), Australian Embassy
16:00 General stakeholder comments (20 min) (3-4 min per comment)
16:20 Closing comments, key takeaways, call to action for future collaboration (10 min) Dr. Pham Kim Dang, Deputy Director General, DLP