Increasing the value of agricultural products from deep processing

From large-scale fields to modern production lines, the province’s agricultural production is changing strongly thanks to attracting investment in agricultural processing. Not only does it help increase product value, deep processing also opens up a direction for sustainable development, creates jobs, stabilizes output and gradually brings the province’s agricultural products further into the market.

Foreign partners came to survey and connect to import products of VINAGREEN Development Investment Joint Stock Company, Trieu Son commune. Photo: Le Hoi

In recent years, realizing the increasing demand for pennywort in people's lives, Dong Ngau Plant and Livestock Cooperative, Phuc Gia village, Tho Long commune has boldly accumulated land, investing more than 3 hectares in pennywort cultivation. Not stopping at raw production, the Cooperative determined that deep processing is an inevitable direction to increase the value of this traditional crop.

From clean raw materials, the Cooperative has invested in a system of factories and a closed production line to process pennywort powder using modern sterilization freeze-drying technology. This process helps to preserve the natural green color, fresh flavor and inherent nutritional content of pennywort - which is difficult to meet with traditional hot-drying methods. Thanks to that, Dong Ngau pennywort powder products quickly established a foothold in the market. Currently, the product has been recognized as a 3-star OCOP product at the provincial level and is available on e-commerce platforms, expanding its ability to reach customers. To ensure a stable source of raw materials, the Cooperative proactively signed contracts with local people and a number of other businesses and cooperatives in the area, and at the same time implemented the construction of growing areas according to VietGAP standards, moving towards organic. This is an important foundation to help Dong Ngau pennywort meet the increasingly stringent requirements of the market.

According to Director of Dong Ngau Plant and Livestock Cooperative Le Viet Ngoc: “On average, each month the cooperative harvests and produces nearly 300kg of pennywort powder. From planting, care to harvesting, the entire process strictly follows VietGAP standards to ensure product safety and quality. Investing in modern machinery not only helps reduce labor costs and increase productivity, but also overcomes dependence on traders and avoids price pressure during peak harvest season.”

While Dong Ngau Cooperative has shown a proactive and flexible approach in processing small-scale agricultural products, VINAGREEN Investment and Development Joint Stock Company has opened a larger-scale direction by investing in a high-quality agricultural product processing factory in Trieu Son commune. After a year of construction, in January 2025, phase 1 of the factory was completed and put into operation the most modern rice processing line in the Northern region with a capacity of 100,000 tons of rice per year. Currently, the factory's products are brought to the market and are present in many provinces and cities across the country, highly appreciated by consumers for their quality, design and appearance.

To ensure a stable source of input materials, the factory has cooperated with farmers in Trieu Son, Thieu Hoa, Nong Cong communes... to form concentrated, large-scale commercial rice production areas. At the same time, the company cooperated with agricultural service cooperatives to organize training on regulations on granting growing area codes, packaging facility codes, record keeping practices, field management, traceability... aiming at export.

Chairman of the Board of Directors of VINAGREEN Investment and Development Joint Stock Company Do Minh Thuy shared: “ Thanh Hoa has many favorable conditions to develop agricultural production, especially rice with about 120,000 hectares per crop. Based on that reality, the company decided to invest in the VINAGREEN High-Quality Agricultural Products Processing Factory in Trieu Son Commune with the desire to create a sustainable link between enterprises and farmers and cooperatives, in order to improve product quality, meet the needs of the domestic and export markets, and at the same time create more jobs for workers, contributing to promoting the agricultural development of the province”.

The province currently has 661 recognized OCOP products, including 2 5-star products, 59 4-star products and 600 3-star products. Most production facilities focus on investing in equipment and applying technology to agricultural product processing, helping to improve quality and meet the increasing expectations of consumers. To continue developing agricultural product preservation and processing facilities, the agricultural sector and localities are implementing solutions under the Project "Connecting production, processing and consumption to increase the value of key agricultural products in Thanh Hoa province by 2030". In particular, focusing on attracting investment in processing factories in raw material areas; prioritizing projects on preliminary processing and preservation of fresh vegetables and fruits; building post-harvest centers associated with production and logistics areas. This is a suitable direction in the trend of modern agricultural development, not only stopping at the cultivation stage but also associated with processing, trade and traceability, contributing to the formation and development of the province's agricultural processing industry in the direction of value chain linkage.

Le Hoi

Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/nang-cao-gia-tri-nong-san-tu-che-bien-sau-270759.htm