A green aspiration amidst the Phu Thinh tea hills.

Amidst the lush green hills of Phu Thinh, tea is a crop well-suited to the soil, providing a stable income for the local people. Here, a Tay woman has written a remarkable story, elevating the local tea buds into an established brand. That woman is Ha Thi Yen, Director of the Hai Yen Tea Cooperative, Lang Thuong hamlet, Phu Thinh commune.

Members of the Hai Yen Tea Cooperative are harvesting tea.

Born in 1976 into a family with over half a century of experience in tea cultivation, Ms. Yen has been familiar with the endless green tea hills since childhood. But in her memory, those were also the arduous days of her parents, "working for meager profits," when the products lacked technical expertise, the quality was inconsistent, and the value was low.

"Looking at the bags of tea my parents produced, all their hard work, yet they didn't sell much, I felt a constant pang of guilt. If things didn't change, the tea from our hometown would forever remain confined to the local market," Yến recalled.

It was from this concern that a dream was kindled and grew: to break Phu Thinh tea out of its vicious cycle and affirm the true value that nature had bestowed upon it. In 2018, Ms. Yen and several other households boldly established the Hai Yen Tea Cooperative. The initial path was far from smooth due to limited capital, lack of modern processing equipment, limited market knowledge, and the fact that many households still maintained the habit of small-scale production.

Ms. Yen recounted: "The hardest part was changing mindsets. Many people didn't believe that producing clean, VietGAP-certified tea could fetch a high price. I had to go to each house to persuade them, explain, and then provide advance capital and support in purchasing their products to reassure them."

Through perseverance, starting with 7 members and over 1 hectare of tea plantation, the cooperative has now established a stable raw material area, including 5 hectares of organic tea and 10 hectares of VietGAP-certified tea, while also linking with more than 30 producing households. Each year, the cooperative supplies approximately 180 tons of fresh tea leaves, distributing its products to many provinces and cities such as Hanoi , Hai Phong, Thanh Hoa, and Khanh Hoa…

Display and introduce Hai Yen tea products to consumers.

Not only is the cooperative's tea popular in the domestic market, but it is also chosen by many customers as gifts for relatives and business partners abroad. Ms. Hoang Thi Thu, a household affiliated with the Hai Yen Tea Cooperative, shared: "Thanks to the brand, the value of the tea plant has increased significantly. Revenue per acre of tea has increased by 20-30%, allowing my family to invest in modern machinery to support production."

From the lush green tea plantations, the cooperative's first product that made its mark was Ben Xuan green tea. The name evokes the old ferry landing on the Cong River, a place associated with the legend of Coc and Cong, and the winding waterway embracing the fertile tea hills.

Ms. Yen named the tea "Spring Wharf" with the aspiration that Phu Thinh tea would sail smoothly to the open sea, becoming a source of pride for her hometown. Each tea bud is harvested while dew is still clinging to it, and through a processing process using modern machinery, the resulting tea has a mild, lingering astringent taste, leaving a sweet aftertaste in the throat.

Along with Ben Xuan green tea, Hai Yen shrimp bud tea is also a source of pride for the cooperative. Every step in the processing of this product is associated with the word "fine": carefully selected, pure, and refined. Therefore, when brewed, the tea emits a pure aroma, with a shimmering golden-green color that leaves the drinker captivated.

Ms. Ha Thi Yen (on the left), Director of Hai Yen Tea Cooperative, has contributed to elevating the Phu Thinh tea brand.

Ben Xuan green tea and Hai Yen shrimp bud tea are also products that have achieved OCOP 4-star certification of the cooperative, becoming typical products of the Phu Thinh tea region. But for Ms. Yen, the results are not the ultimate goal.

Ms. Yen shared: "The new brand is just the first step. I want to aim for wider product distribution throughout the country and, if possible, to expand internationally. But this also requires the cooperative to have significant resources, rigorous processes, and more professional personnel."

To prepare for the future, Hai Yen Tea Cooperative is seeking investment partners, expanding its online sales channels, experimenting with deeply processed product lines such as tea bags and herbal teas, and training farmers in organic production.

“I hope Phu Thinh will become a clean and safe tea-growing region, free from harmful chemicals. Each tea bud not only holds economic value but also represents cultural pride and a green environment,” said Ms. Yen.

From the red tiled roofs at the foot of the hill, from the tea buds still glistening with dew, Ms. Ha Thi Yen's aspirations continue to spread. The road ahead may be full of challenges, but she believes that with perseverance, faith, and the strength of the community, Phu Thinh tea will one day stand shoulder to shoulder with renowned brands. And when people think of Thai Nguyen , they will remember not only the vast tea hills, but also this Tay woman with her dream of bringing her hometown's tea to the "big ocean."

Source: https://baothainguyen.vn/kinh-te/202509/khat-vong-xanh-giua-doi-che-phu-thinh-f836e89/