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Rethinking Food System Through Mindful Consumption: Vcil Consumers Club
- VCIL Community
- Jul 17
- 3 min read
Today’s modern industrial food system has distanced and anonymized the relationship between producers and consumers. Instead of knowing who grows our vegetables, raises our fish, or makes each item on our plate, we only see packaged goods and big brand names on supermarket shelves. This system operates through a long supply chain—from suppliers and manufacturers to distributors, retailers, and finally to consumers. This separation and complexity have stripped us of control, leaving us unaware of how our food is grown and produced, and whether it is safe, environmentally friendly, and respectful of human dignity.
The root of the problem is not just convenience or production scale, but the market mechanism itself, which prioritizes mass production and lacks real connection between actual supply and demand. This leads to various negative consequences. On one hand, consumers are disconnected from the origins of their food and lose the ability to make informed choices. On the other, this lack of linkage results in overproduction, inefficient distribution, and severe food waste. For example, in Nghe An, even when watermelons and cantaloupes are in peak season and fields are overflowing with ripe fruit, farmers cannot sell them and have to lay them out by the roadside waiting for individual buyers. When production is not aligned with actual demand, it leads to surplus, stagnation, and the loss of edible food—while farmers suffer heavy losses.
Additionally, “clean” food—organically grown, chemical-free, and environmentally friendly—often comes at high prices, becoming a privilege for the wealthy rather than a common option for the broader community. This is a major paradox of the current system: healthy food has become a luxury, while cheap industrial food—harmful to both health and the environment—floods the market.
🍀 In response to this reality, Vcil Community has created the Consumers Club as an alternative solution: a model that reverses the conventional consumer–producer relationship.
Instead of being passive buyers, club members become active consumers: they tell producers exactly what they need, define their desired production standards, and commit to purchasing under clear and transparent agreements.
The principle of “direct from the producer” creates a two-way relationship—more connected and accountable. Consumers are no longer anonymous strangers but companions of the producers. And producers no longer sell nameless mass-market goods but meet the specific needs of a community while maintaining personal credibility.
✨ The Mindful Consumers Club is a dedicated space for members of Vcil Community to collectively promote:
Mindful consumption: Knowing what we buy and why.
Ethical consumption: Considering the impact on people and the planet.
Regenerative lifestyle: Supporting economic systems that are resilient and sustainable.
The club connects directly with social enterprises, local initiatives, and producers that provide organic, healthy, and environmentally friendly products and services. These partners not only generate economic value but also contribute to building a more just society and a regenerative ecosystem.
💚 What sets the Consumers Club apart is not just cheaper or group buying, but the creation of a transparent and humane marketplace.
Club members place collective orders to reduce costs, ensure stable market access for farmers, and offer fair prices to consumers.
If suitable products that meet health, environmental, and ethical standards are not available, the club will proactively negotiate and collaborate with producers to place custom orders, co-shaping the production process.
This is a co-creation process—transforming each transaction into a meaningful choice and a concrete step toward system change.
✨ To ensure transparency and foster trust between consumers and producers, the Consumers Club operates based on the following principles:
1️⃣ Product origins and producer identities are always clear to consumers.
2️⃣ Consumers are fully informed about the production methods.
3️⃣ Meetings and exchanges between both sides are encouraged—through farm visits, factory tours, or club-organized events. This helps share experiences, foster understanding, and better meet each other’s needs.
👉 How Vcil Consumers Club works:
Currently, Vcil Community collects orders from members on a biweekly basis. Once needs are compiled, Vcil connects with suitable suppliers and producers to fulfill actual demand.
In the long run, when the member community has stable annual consumption patterns, we can place pre-orders with farmers and producers—based on real needs. This helps consumers access quality products at reasonable prices and allows producers to plan appropriately, avoiding overproduction and waste.
This model creates a trust-based two-way relationship: consumers are no longer passive in their choices, and producers gain stable market access. This is how we can collectively build a more transparent, fair, and sustainable food systemfor our communities.
Note: Recipients will pay shipping fees upon delivery. To save on delivery costs, members are encouraged to place joint orders (e.g., those in Ho Chi Minh City can combine orders).
Currently available products through Vcil Consumers Club:
Tu Viet seasonal rice
Sahu salt
Man Thai fish sauce
👉 Register to purchase products is available for Membership only
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