Research Commercialization - Protein Bait Mini-site

Welcome to the mini-site for the ACIAR research activity on Research Commercialization and production of Protein Baits. This project is being undertaken by three main partners - Plant Protection Research Institute (Vietnam), MDI (Vietnam) and Griffith University (Australia). A short summary of the research activities is here.

This small research activity funded by ACIAR is a direct result of a larger on-going ACIAR research project led by Professor Dick Drew of Griffith University, Australia called "Managing pest fruit flies to increase production of fruit and vegetable crops in Vietnam" which has been successfully undertaken between 2001 and the present by Griffith University, National Institute of Plant Protection, Fosters Asia, Southern Fruit Research Institute, Aventis and University of Western Sydney. A summary of the activities of this larger project can be found here.

This mini-site is aimed at (i) providing an overview of the protein bait commercialization activities ordered as a timeline (see below) (ii) to act as a collection point for important documents, photographs and reports related to the protein bait commercialization (iii) provide useful information and ideas for other research institutes planning on commercialization of research (iv) publicize agricultural research outputs from other institutes that are suitable for commercialization in order to help them find business partners (click here for more details).

Ento-pro is also being trialed in persimmon in Da Bac, Hoa Binh province in conjunction with the CIAT SADU project. Details are here.

Protein Bait Commercialization Activity Timeline

• Late 2005 - Early 2006
  Start of Planning for Commercialization
  After successful development of protein bait product, Plant Protection Research Institute begin to plan on how to commercialize this research output.

• January 2006
  First Visits to Potential Partners
  PPRI and ACIAR staff, in conjunction with MDI make first visits to potential partners for protein bait commercialization. These visits were to larger breweries, but in general did not produce successful results.

• May 2006 - September 2006
  Development of Business Plan and Identification of Potential Partners
  PPRI staff, assisted by MDI developed a comprehensive business plan for commercializing protein baits, including production, testing, quality control and distribution/marketing aspects. Armed with a well developed business plan, PPRI conduct meetings with a number of potential partners. 

• September 2006
  Joint Stock Company Formed
  As a result of a lot of hard work from PPRI, in September 2006 a new joint stock company was formed - the Vietnam Safe Biotechnology Company. The aim of the company is to produce and distribute protein bait, and has three partners: PPRI, the An Thinh Brewery and the Hoa Binh Chemical Company. The trademark of the protein bait product will be "Ento-Pro". See some pictures here.

• November 2006
  Design and Planning of Protein Bait Production Plant
  PPRI experts travel to Tien Giang province in order to observe a protein production facility. On the basis of this information, a large and efficient facility is designed for production of Ento-Pro.

• November 2006
  Research Commercialization Event in Hanoi
  ACIAR and the Making Markets Work Better for the Poor project co-sponsored a national workshop on research commercialization and the impact of the new Decree 115. This event brought together research institutes, donors/NGOs and private companies interested in investing in research commercialization. PPRI gave a presentation of their experience in commercialization of agricultural research - one of the first successful examples of its type in Vietnam. See some pictures here, and you can find a short report here. Read about the event here at the M4P website.

• February 2007
  Production Facility Construction Complete
  Construction of the production facility in Bac Ninh was completed. Click here for some pictures.

• May 2007
  Ento-Pro Production Facility Officially Opened
  On 9th May, the Ento-Pro production facility was officially opened by Vice Minister of Trade, Dr. Tran Duc Minh; Executive Director of ACIAR, Dr Peter Core; Australian Ambassador, Bill Tweddel and the Director of the Vietnam Academy of Agricultural Science, Dr. Nguyen Van Bo. The ceremony was attended by around 70 guests from Vietnam and Australia, and was widely reported in the local and international media. A report on Ento-Pro and the opening ceremony was broadcast on Vietnam Television (including VTV1 and VTV3) a total of three times, and generated enormous interest in the new product, showing that there is potentially a very great demand. Find pictures of the event here and some links to international media reporting of the event here.

• May 2007 - July 2007
  First Ento-Pro Field Demonstration
  From May to July 2007, a very successful field demonstration of Ento-Pro was held in Long Luong Commune, Moc Chau District in Son La Province. The demonstration centered on the use of Ento-Pro to control fruit-fly in peach production. Read a detailed progress report of the demonstration here, and see some photos from the demonstration here.

• July 2007
  Production Milestone
  By mid-July 2007, the production of Ento-Pro had reached a significant milestone, with a total of 10,000 kg produced since the opening ceremony. This is a great achievement in response to strong demand.

• August - October 2007
  Second Ento-Pro Field Demonstration
  The second Ento-Pro field demonstration activity was undertaken on around 25 hectares of Guava in Liem Mac Commune, Thanh Ha District of Hai Duong Province. Guava is a major high-value crop in the district, but the devastation from fruit fly infestation means that local farmers lose significant income every year. Ento-Pro has good potential to help local farmers significantly improve their incomes. The demonstration took approximately 3 months. Pictures and report from the first visit to the site on 10 August are here. Pictures and a report from the final visit to the site can be found here.

• 7 - 9 September 2007
  Training for Ento-Pro Distribution Staff 
  Ento-Pro distribution staff from the grassroots in Nghe An province were trained in techniques for utilizing Ento-Pro. The training was undertaken by PPRI staff and Hoa Binh Chemical Company staff in Nghe An province.

• 12-14 September 2007
  Training for Ento-Pro Distribution Staff 
  Ento-Pro distribution staff from the grassroots in Lang Son and Bac Giang provinces were trained in techniques for utilizing Ento-Pro. The training was undertaken by PPRI staff and Hoa Binh Chemical Company staff in Lang Son province.

• 15 -17 September 2007
  Training for Ento-Pro Distribution Staff 
  Ento-Pro distribution staff from the grassroots in Tuyen Quang province were trained in techniques for utilizing Ento-Pro. The training was undertaken by PPRI staff and Hoa Binh Chemical Company staff in Tuyen Quang province.

• 18-20 September 2007
  Training for Ento-Pro Distribution Staff 
  Ento-Pro distribution staff from the grassroots in Ha Giang were trained in techniques for utilizing Ento-Pro. The training was undertaken by PPRI staff and Hoa Binh Chemical Company staff in Ha Giang.

Upcoming Activities

• Ongoing
  Media Promotion
  Production of television and radio programs based on the demonstration models and broadcasting around 25 times on television and more than 300 times on radio.

• Ongoing
  Baseline data collection
  Information about baseline levels of pesticide type and amounts will be collected from at least 5 of the commodities being trialed in this project. Where possible, due to the short timeframe of this project, monitoring data demonstrating behavior change within the client groups will also be collected and documented.

• Ongoing
  Distribution Staff Training
  A further six distribution staff training sessions will be undertaken through 2008

• October - November 2008
  Third Ento-Pro Field Demonstration
  The third Ento-Pro field demonstration will take place in two communes in Hai Phong Province, and will concentrate on controlling fruit fly in jujube. However, as the jujube are generally grown in mixed orchards, there is good potential to also demonstrate the effectiveness of Ento-Pro on other fruits, including star fruit, guava and mango.

Important Information

Timeline of Research Commercialization - Protein Bait Research Activity

Read about upcoming activities

Website for project CP/1998/005: Managing pest fruit flies to increase production of fruit and vegetable crops in Vietnam

International media reporting of the opening of the Ento-pro facility

Pictures and report from the successful first field demonstration of Ento-pro in Son La Province

Pictorial Report from first visit to the second field demonstration of Ento-pro in Hai Duong Province

Pictures and report from final visit to Lien Mac (Hai Duong)

List of other agricultural research products which need partners for commercialization

Interactive map of research activities

Read about the Ento-pro trial with the CIAT SADU project here.