On December 19, 2023, the Inauguration of the Ginseng Sprouts Smart Farm and Joint R&BD Platform took place at Campus 2 of the VNUHCM-University of Science, located in the Urban Area of VNUHCM (Di An — Thu Duc). The VNUHCM-University of Science (VNUHCM-US) and Jeonbuk National University (JBNU) co-operated to establish these two projects.

Participants in the Inauguration include:

On the side of the VNUHCM-University of Science:

• Mr. Phùng Anh Kiệt — Director of the Centre for the Management and Development of the Urban Area of VNUHCM;
• Assoc. Prof. Trần Lê Quan — President;
• Assoc. Prof. Trần Văn Mẫn — Head of the Office of Science and Technology;
• Assoc. Prof. Ngô Đại Nghiệp — Head of the Office of External Relations;
• Ph.D. Nguyễn Hữu Hoàng — Director of the Research Center for Hi-Tech Application in Agriculture.

On the side of Jeonbuk National University, Korea:

• Mr Kim Jin Hyeon — Project Leader and Researcher of the Centre of New and Renewable Energy;
• Mr Jung Dong Un — Director of the Office of Foreign Cooperation;
• Prof. Kim Chong Yeal — The Centre of New and Renewable Energy;
• Prof. Lee Kuk Haeng — The Centre of New and Renewable Energy;
• Prof. Kim Jin Seok — The Centre of New and Renewable Energy;
• Mr Jo Jung Mook — Research Center of New and Renewable Energy;
• Mr Kang Seon Hwang — Research Center of New and Renewable Energy;
• Mr Lee Kyong Moo — CEO of LETECHNUS Company;
• Mr Lee Kyong Won — CEO of TWIN INNOVATION Company;
• Mr Jung Jin Su — CEO of J SOLUTION Company.

The Ginseng Sprouts Smart Farm was carried out to analyse the factors and environmental conditions that affect the cultivation of Korean ginseng sprouts. In addition, the farm is also combined with a light distribution solar module and a natural lighting farming system to monitor the energy supply and consumption for ginseng sprout cultivation. Moreover, with the operation of the Joint R&BD Platform, the VNUHCM-US and the JBNU aim to develop research areas including:

• Solar energy
• Energy storage
• High-tech agriculture
• Plant physiology and medicinal chemistry

Furthermore, the Joint R&BD Platform is also a place to create favourable conditions and a working environment for research and the exchange of experiences among professors, researchers, lecturers, and students of both universities.

Following the Inauguration, the two units also had a working session to discuss in detail the cooperation projects. Through the Global Business Progress Report, a representative of JBNU said: “We have completed the construction of 2 smart farms, each with a rooftop solar energy storage system installed (approximately 7.8 kW and 8.4 kW), and 32,000 ginseng sprouts were planted and harvested in the first crop season (about 97.54%), achieving energy savings of 30–40% through the solar energy storage system.”

“Green energy and renewable energy projects are a development trend for the new era and will be focused on investment soon,” shared Assoc. Prof. Trần Văn Mẫn.

During the exchange discussion between the two sides, Assoc. Prof. Trần Văn Mẫn proposed several cooperative activities with JBNU in the future, such as an energy storage system, a Master’s and Doctoral training programme, and the technology transfer of growing ginseng sprouts to Dong Thap Province.

Prof. Kim Chong Yeal also shared the goals that JBNU aims to achieve when cooperating with the VNUHCM-US:

• The commercialization of ginseng sprouts, however, requires further study of current and related legal regulations.
• Expanding the scale of the Smart Farm.
• Developing plans for other renewable energy projects to be implemented by 2024.

The cooperation plan of the two universities until 2025:

• In terms of Research and Development: Solving the disadvantages of Smart Farms, researching green hydrogen energy sources, improving ginseng sprout cultivation techniques, and researching and developing solar energy for agriculture.
• In terms of Commercialization: Ensuring distribution channels for ginseng, designing a special distribution zone for ginseng, and establishing a Vietnamese-Korean enterprise responsible for commercialising and distributing ginseng.