A Vietnamese Fruit & Vegetable E-Commerce Brand’s Packaging Upgrade: From 1,600 to 15,000 Bags Per Day With One Automatic Mesh Bag Packaging Machine

Last year, VeggieDay, a fresh produce e-commerce brand based in Ho Chi Minh City, faced a universal pain point for growing businesses: its packaging capacity could not keep up with surging orders.

The brand sells large volumes of potatoes, onions, and garlic in mesh bags through both supermarket distribution and online retail channels. While orders grew rapidly, its packaging workshop relied entirely on the most primitive manual process: more than a dozen workers manually opened mesh bags, filled them with fruits and vegetables, and tied the openings at a long table. Le Thi Huong, the production line manager, struggled with staffing scheduling every day. Even during peak periods, when she hired 20 temporary workers to fill the entire workshop, the maximum daily output was only just over 1,600 bags.

What was even more problematic was the inconsistency caused by manual operations. Hand weighing always came with deviations: mesh bags labeled as 1kg were sometimes 50-60g overweight, and other times underweight, resulting in direct fines from the e-commerce platform. Occasionally, the bag openings were not tied tightly, causing onions to spill all over during transit, which led to photo complaints from customers who received the damaged goods. "During that time, my hands shook every time I saw a customer complaint record," Le Thi Huong recalled.

The Solution: Automation Upgrade with "the Iron Hand"

The company finally made the decision to carry out an automation upgrade. After comparing several solutions, it ultimately introduced a fully automatic mesh bag packaging machine – the equipment later nicknamed "the Iron Hand" by workshop staff.

Full Automatic Net Bag Packing Machine：

The working principle of this mesh bag packaging machine is straightforward. It uses an elevator and multihead weigher to automatically convey fruits and vegetables. Mesh bags are pre-sleeved on two feeding barrels: one in operation and the other on standby, enabling mesh bag replacement without stopping the machine. Once the weighed produce drops into the bag, the machine instantly tightens the bag opening, seals it with flat wire, and can be equipped with an optional automatic tag insertion function. The entire cycle runs 10 to 15 times per minute.

What impressed Le Thi Huong most was the day the machine arrived at the factory. The equipment has a compact footprint and fit into the workshop without major renovations. After connecting the power supply and completing commissioning in less than half a day, the first batch of potatoes was smoothly packaged in mesh bags by the machine. The data on the touch screen is clear at a glance: number of bags packaged, operating speed, and any abnormal conditions. The system also has a reserved communication interface, which can be directly connected to the back-end management system to export output reports.

The Transformation: Productivity and Quality Leap

Today, VeggieDay’s packaging workshop has been completely transformed. Only two workers are needed: one to feed produce into the elevator, and another to conduct inspections via the screen, while the machine runs non-stop throughout the day. It easily completes 14,000 to 15,000 bags per day, and can reach a peak output of over 17,000 bags during all-night operations for major sales events. The weight error is controlled within an extremely narrow range, and the bag openings are sealed as tightly as machine-sewn seams. Since the tags are printed and inserted synchronously with the packaging process, each bag has a unique batch code, making quality control and traceability exceptionally easy.

Working Process：

ROI Analysis: A Worthwhile Investment

Le Thi Huong has calculated the real return on investment (ROI) of this fruit and vegetable mesh bag packaging machine. Previously, labor costs for the packaging process accounted for nearly 30% of the total operating costs. Now, this single machine delivers the same output as the entire previous manual packaging line, cutting labor expenses by more than 80%. There is no significant change in the consumption of mesh bags and flat wire consumables; on the contrary, thanks to the machine’s precise operation, the length of mesh bag used per bag is reduced, lowering monthly consumable costs. Not to mention the intangible benefits brought by the reduced return rate and fewer customer complaints.

Experience Sharing and Future Plans

"Some peers hesitate, thinking the initial investment is too high. But I tell them to calculate a different account: during the peak season of manual packaging, can you guarantee to hire enough workers and maintain consistent quality? During the Online Friday sales event, our machine ran non-stop in three shifts, and we maintained stable output and quality the entire time," Le Thi Huong shared.

Today, VeggieDay has planned to equip its new warehouse in Hanoi with two more sets of the same automatic mesh bag packaging machine, and expand the packaging line to cover sweet potatoes and citrus products. "If someone asks me about the most worthwhile equipment investment I’ve ever made in the future, I will definitely start with the story of this 'Iron Hand' mesh bag packaging machine," said Le Thi Huong.