Training Material of the Project “Strengthen Vietnamese SPS capacities for trade-Improving safety and quality of fresh vegetables through the value chain approach” (STDF/PG/259)

This handbook has been designed for you, the farmers enrolled in the Farm Business School (FBS) in your villages. The training program covers the following broad topics that are expected to be covered over a cropping season or livestock cycle. These include:

1. Understanding and running the FBS;

2. Understanding basic business and marketing concepts;

3. Analyzing the existing farm situation;

4.  Identifying profitable enterprises;

5. Preparing farm business plans;

6. Keeping farm records;

7. Evaluating the FBS and the farm business plan; and

8. Miscellaneous topics for selection.

In-built into the program is flexibility and the possibility for you to decide what you wish to study. It is also expected that each participant will be responsible for your own learning.

The Handbook provides summaries of the core messages covered in the training. We hope these take-home messages will be useful when applying the lessons learned from the training to your own farm business enterprises. The best test of its usefulness, however, will be seen through the success of your own farm business.