Fin Ho Tra - tea brand of the Red Dao people in Ha Giang

Red Dao people in Thong Nguyen commune, Hoang Su Phi district ( Ha Giang ) harvest ancient Shan Tuyet tea.

Talking to Mr. Ly Thanh Nhan, Deputy Director of Phin Ho Tea Processing Cooperative about the origin of Shan Tuyet tea tree, Mr. Nhan shared: No one knows when Shan Tuyet tea tree has been on the high mountain of Phin Ho village. When it was discovered, the tree was so big that a person could not hug it. According to legend told by the ancients, at the end of the 16th century, there were only 2 Red Dao households with the surname Ly who steadfastly stuck to this wild mountainous land, with a cold climate and year-round clouds. Over many generations, the Red Dao people have built a close-knit community. During the process of working and living in the midst of majestic nature, they accidentally discovered a tree with dark green leaves, pure white flowers and a gentle fragrance. Trying to use the leaves for bathing, treating diseases and making drinks, they found that the water had a slightly astringent taste mixed with a sweet aftertaste that was very attractive. That is the tea tree, a special tree with young buds covered with white fluff like snow on high mountains, hence the name Shan Tuyet tea - a gift from the mountains and forests to the Red Dao people in Phin Ho.

The Red Dao people then took the seeds to plant more, expand the area of ​​ancient Shan Tuyet tea forests and process them manually such as: roasting tea in a cast iron pan, drying tea on the kitchen loft, drying tea in the sun... Over many centuries, the Red Dao people have known how to produce and process tea from manual to modern machinery technology. In 2008, in order to promote the strengths of the locality as well as increase the value of the product, the Red Dao people together established a cooperative to process tea to meet market demand. Up to now, the Phin Ho tea processing cooperative has 5 different product lines under the Fin Ho Tra brand, namely: Green tea, Red tea, Black tea, White tea and Fairy tea. Each product has a different flavor with a selling price from 300 thousand to 12 million VND/kg.

Fin Ho Tra's products are all processed from the youngest tea buds of hundreds of years old Shan Tuyet tea trees in the tea region. In 2015, the tea products were certified by the European Union as meeting EU Organic standards from the growing area to the production process at the factory. In particular, thanks to complying with regulations on the production and processing of clean tea according to organic standards, constantly investing, upgrading production technology and expanding the consumption market, in 2021, the two products of the Cooperative, Green Tea and Black Tea, were certified by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (now the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment ) as 5-star OCOP products at the national level.

With a total area of ​​500 hectares of tea in Phin Ho village and neighboring communes in the district, each year the cooperative supplies the market with more than 200 tons of organic dry tea. In addition to focusing on innovating technological lines and diversifying products, the cooperative regularly coordinates to organize training courses on planting and caring techniques, harvesting, and preliminary processing of tea for farmers, ensuring compliance with organic standards to maintain product quality. In addition to supplying the domestic market, tea products of Phin Ho Tea Processing Cooperative have been exported to a number of countries and territories such as China, Taiwan, Russia, Germany, etc., receiving high appreciation from consumers. Since 2019, Fin Ho Tra products have appeared in the Winmart supermarket system and many retail stores and hundreds of points of sale nationwide.

It has taken more than a decade for the children of Dao Phin Ho village to successfully build a local brand. Now the products of the Cooperative have affirmed their solid position in the market, especially with 2 products certified as 5-star OCOP. That is also the motivation for the members of the Cooperative to continue expanding production, innovating technology, and maintaining the reputation of the Fin Ho Tra brand.

From the success story of Phin Ho Cooperative, it can be seen that promoting the strengths of local specialties, linking with national culture and exploiting them in a sustainable manner is a key factor in creating differentiated and valuable products. In addition, it is necessary to invest in improving quality from production to processing, complying with organic and food safety standards to meet the increasing demands of the market. The transition from manual methods to modern technology, constantly innovating designs, diversifying products and expanding domestic and foreign consumption markets are also important directions. Building a systematic brand, proactively promoting trade, and linking products with the OCOP program will help increase value, increase income, and contribute to sustainable economic development.

Hoang Duong

Source: https://baohoabinh.com.vn/16/201390/Fin-Ho-Tra--thuong-hieu-tra-cua-nguoi-Dao-Do--tai-Ha-Giang.htm