Veunkham salt producer focusing on quality not quantity
Veunkham salt producer focusing on quality not quantity
Veunkham Salt Co., Ltd, one of the leading producers in Laos is not concentrating on boosting production capacity but instead sustainable quality improvement.
The factory has the capacity to produce about 15-20 tonnes a day but the factory produces less than that, the company Managing Director, Ms Bounthavy Chounlamany told Vientiane Times recently.
Meanwhile, the number of workers employed at the facility has remained stable for many years creating job opportunities for local residents and poor people from rural areas.
For more than twenty years, the company has cre ated job opportunity for hundreds people at the site in Veunkham village of Xaythany district, Vientiane, she said.
“Many people are from poor families in the northern provinces and they are able save their money after they work at the factory,” Ms Bounthavy confirmed.
Some employees have updated their skills on quality improvement and management, which helps to improve the product's quality.
“The company is seeking to attain International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) and the Good Manufacture Practice (GMP) quality certification”, she said.
The company currently was improving production techniques and management to achieve the standards, which they would obtain next year, she expected.
“This certification will help promote the products, ease their entry into foreign market and value-add,” Ms Bounthavy said.
However, the company would also continue to target domestic supply, she added.
Different countries are producing salt by brine from the sea but Laos has the advantage of producing salt via brine from the ground.
Many countries especially Japan, Taiwan, Republic of Korea and some Asean countries are interested in Lao salt products for supplying their markets. The company has previously exported to these countries but in limited amounts.
She believed the high purity brine which was rich in minerals (calcium, magnesium, potassium and zinc) and naturally sourced from a rock salt mine would be able to compete in regional and foreign markets.
The company still produces salt the traditional way without the use of large scale machinery and chemicals.
