OCOP products must be highly competitive goods to be able to develop sustainably.

Mr. Nguyen Minh Son, Director of Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief of Office of New Rural Area Coordination of Quang Ninh province. — Director of Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief of Office for New Rural Area Coordination of the province Nguyen Minh Son.

Once a very early locality in the country to implement the One Commune, One Product (OCOP) Program, however, in recent years, Quang Ninh's OCOP Program has shown signs of stagnation, even at risk of falling behind the development of the OCOP Program in other localities. Entering 2025, one of the agricultural economic indicators that the province and the agricultural sector are determined to promote is to improve the quality, output and value of OCOP products. To clarify this issue, reporters from the Provincial Media Center interviewed Mr. Nguyen Minh Son, Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief of the Provincial New Rural Development Coordination Office.

- There is an opinion that Quang Ninh 's OCOP Program is "going ahead but may be behind", what do you think about this opinion?

+ With a locality that is not very favorable for agriculture , but there was a time when the whole province had more than 600 OCOP products, over 300 entities participating in the production and distribution of OCOP products, it can be said that it was an effort and success of Quang Ninh.

Currently, Quang Ninh has over 390 OCOP products, in terms of quantity, this parameter is decreasing compared to before. The reason for this comes from many sides, including the undeniable fact that a part of the OCOP product producers are satisfied with what has been achieved, or have not caught up with the development trend of the OCOP Program. The specific manifestation is that there are still OCOP product producers who let their products expire, as well as being inactive in extending or upgrading the products. Besides, new OCOP products are also appearing less than before.

Dang Phuong fish sauce of Dang Phuong fish sauce Company Limited (Mong Cai), an OCOP product is highly appreciated by the market. — Dang Phuong fish sauce of Dang Phuong Fish Sauce Company Limited (Mong Cai City) is a 3-star OCOP product that is highly appreciated in the market.

- Does that mean OCOP Quang Ninh has run out of room for development?

+ Quang Ninh OCOP products, in addition to having good quality and guaranteed quantity, must also be unique products, highly localized, associated with or bearing the mark of the development of the land and people of Quang Ninh. With the current OCOP products of Quang Ninh, it can be said that they are products that encompass the most core criteria. However, we can still have new OCOP products, formed in the process of developing socio-economic life in the area.

However, I think that the room for development of Quang Ninh OCOP products at this stage is not only completely new products, but also products formed after refining existing raw OCOP products. For example, with Quy Hoa golden flower tea, an OCOP product that has reached the national 5-star level, we will not only have products in the form of cotton, leaves, and filter bags as usual as today, but can also be powdered products, essences, or products processed from other parts of the tea tree.

It is known that Quy Hoa Trading Service and Import-Export Company Limited has just introduced a product of golden flower tea in bud form called Kim Hoa Dragon Claw that can be included in the list of OCOP products, or OCOP products are ranked if they really meet the criteria of quality, output and distinctiveness set by the OCOP program. The potential for Quang Ninh OCOP products in this direction will be set by us, becoming one of the development goals of the OCOP Program in 2025, as well as in the coming time.

Selecting finished yellow camellia flowers at Dap Thanh Forestry Products Trading Joint Stock Company (Ba Che district).

- In 2025, how will the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development advise the province on plans and scenarios for developing the OCOP Program so that Quang Ninh does not fall into the risk of being a locality that "goes first but lags behind", sir?

+ As I said, deep processing, forming refined products from Quang Ninh OCOP raw materials is one of the main development directions of the OCOP Program in 2025. Currently, Quang Ninh has a number of OCOP products in raw form, or in raw form with great potential, such as Ha Long pearls, Ba Che and Hai Ha golden flower tea, Tien Yen chicken, Mong Cai pig, Ba Che Morinda officinalis, Ha Long squid rolls, Cam Pha mineral water, Dong Trieu golden flower sticky rice, Binh Lieu vermicelli... Just changing the processing formula, innovating the product types and designs, or from raw OCOP products forming specific products for each customer group can launch new OCOP products. In addition, we will advise the province and propose relevant departments and branches to further promote trade promotion, advertise and introduce OCOP products to the market, approach potential and sustainable customers and markets; Encourage and support OCOP product production, processing and distribution facilities to increase digital transformation applications... These are inevitable requirements in the current development trend of the OCOP Program.

Tien Yen chicken is a 4-star OCOP product that is considered to be of very good quality, but is currently mainly consumed in raw form.

Above all, I believe that the OCOP Program itself must be a true economic development program, OCOP products must be highly competitive goods, must bring value, revenue, and profit to participants in the production cycle. When this is achieved, even if functional units do not need to support or influence, OCOP product owners will still participate, OCOP products will still develop, still reach far in the domestic and international markets, at that time the OCOP Program will be truly strong, OCOP products will be durable in life.

Thank you!

Source