The fifth annual "Green Consumption Campaign", which seeks to improvepeople's awareness of environmental protection, was launched on May 28in Ho Chi Minh City.

The campaign will call on people to consumemore environment friendly products and encourage businesses to increasetheir responsibility towards the community and the environment.

Accordingto the organisers, seven projects on environmental protection have beencarried out in the city this year, with the participation of more than1,000 volunteers.

A new feature of this year's campaign is theproject that instructs households in Tan Phu district to classifydifferent types of solid garbage, said Nguyen Thanh Ngan, chiefvolunteer coordinator of the campaign.

More than 90 percent of households in the district have committed to maintain "green residential quarters".

NguyenThanh Nhan, Deputy Director of Saigon Co.op, said sales of greenproducts had increased strongly at Co-op Mart supermarket during thecampaign.

For this year, the supermarket chain will set aside atotal of 23.5 billion VND (1.1 million USD), six times higher than lastyear, to implement six promotion programmes under its green consumptionmonth from June 7-22.

During this period, customers will have achance to buy green products at cheaper prices, and receive gifts ifthey use environmentally-friendly bags and others, Nhan said.

Aceremony will be held at the Co.opmart Binh Trieu on June 7 toofficially kick off the "Green Consumption Campaign 2014", which isco-organised by Sai Gon Giai Phong newspaper, the HCM City Department ofIndustry and Trade, and Saigon Co.op.-VNA