Promoting sustainable coffee development

Expanding and developing coffee trees, Son La has issued many policies on replanting, converting to growing specialty coffee, and building raw material areas that meet export standards. Thanks to that, coffee area and output have increased, farmers' farming practices have been innovated, processed products have been diversified, contributing to increasing value, income, reducing poverty, and developing a sustainable socio-economy.

Son La Union of Science and Technology Associations organized a workshop on solutions for coffee development in Son La province.

Expanding in scale, superior quality

Since 2015, Son La has issued a comprehensive and synchronous policy system for coffee development, including planning, production, processing and consumption. The Provincial Party Committee has identified coffee as a key crop, developed in a concentrated, sustainable direction, applying high technology and associated with the processing industry. In particular, Conclusion 863-KL/TU dated May 11, 2023, issued by the Provincial Party Standing Committee, is the latest policy, focusing directly on the goal of producing, processing and consuming coffee applying high technology and linking until 2030.

At the same time, the province issued 3 plans, 10 policies and 6 projects to support replanting, encourage investment, develop sustainable coffee, produce safe and organic agricultural products, improve cooperative capacity, invest in processing and expand markets through e-commerce, and promote exports. The focus is on developing coffee raw material areas associated with processing, environmental protection, applying high technology, supporting trademark registration and traceability. Thanks to that, Son La coffee industry has developed positively, export output has increased, the area of ​​specialty coffee has expanded, and many products have been certified by prestigious organizations.

Mr. Tran Dung Tien, Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Environment, said: In the period of 2021-2025, the whole province will replant, rejuvenate and graft 2,818 hectares of coffee; put into production new Arabica varieties such as TH1, TN7, TN9 and testing H1, Starmaya with high productivity and quality, suitable for local climate and soil, with over 1,120 hectares of specialty coffee, output reaching nearly 1,000 tons/year. Therefore, the province becomes the largest Arabica coffee growing region in the country.

The timely promulgation of policies has brought Son La to 26,000 hectares of coffee, with an output of more than 37,700 tons, leading the country in Arabica coffee area (accounting for 47.9% of the country and 73% of the North). The province has been granted the geographical indication "Son La Coffee" for 7 units; more than 76% of the area has achieved RA, 4C, VietGAP sustainability certification. The province currently has 5 production - processing - consumption chains, 2 high-tech growing areas, 5 OCOP products (1 national 5-star product).

Currently, Son La coffee has become a key export product, estimated at 34,000 tons, worth 100 million USD/year, accounting for nearly half of the province's total export value, with the main markets being the EU and North America.

Officers of the Provincial Agricultural Technical Center instruct members of Bich Thao Coffee Cooperative on high-quality coffee care techniques.

Solutions from experts and businesses

The province currently has 60 cooperatives operating in the coffee sector; 5 industrial-scale processing facilities including Phuc Sinh Son La Joint Stock Company, Son La Coffee Processing Joint Stock Company, Minh Tien Coffee Company Limited, Detech Joint Stock Company and Bich Thao Cooperative; and 15 facilities for preliminary processing and processing of fresh coffee berries into coffee beans for domestic consumption and export. The total industrial processing capacity only meets about 50% of the province's fresh berries output, while manual preliminary processing at households is still common, reducing bean quality and commercial value.

Mr. Vu Ngoc Huy, Head of Raw Material Area Management Department, Phuc Sinh Son La Joint Stock Company, shared: The company has modernized the processing line, linked sustainably with more than 2,000 coffee growing households, and cared for 3,000 hectares of high-quality coffee that meets RA and 4C standards, meeting export requirements to many countries. The stable raw material area helps Phuc Sinh focus on improving quality and diversifying products, including Cascara tea from coffee husks. To sustainably develop the Son La coffee industry, the company proposed that the province support the replication of the "Enterprise - Cooperative - Farmer" linkage model with clear legal contracts and close supervision by the government; at the same time, promote replanting with new varieties, digitize growing areas, build GIS maps for traceability; form concentrated processing industrial clusters to solve land and environmental problems and attract new investors.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Bich Ngoc, Deputy Director of the Vietnam Plant Protection Institute, said: To sustainably develop the coffee industry, Son La province needs to synchronously implement solutions: complete planning, invest in irrigation infrastructure and warehouses; accelerate replanting with new high-quality varieties; build a Northwestern coffee seed center; promote the application of IPM, circular agriculture and digitalize growing areas to trace origins and adapt to climate change. In particular, it is necessary to invest in deep processing, build a unified brand and have preferential credit policies along the chain, making Son La coffee a high-quality, safe and sustainable Arabica brand.

While researching the topic "Coffee development policy in Son La - Current situation and solutions", Ms. Pham Thi Thu Ha, Chairwoman of the Union of Science and Technology Associations of Son La province, shared: After researching the topic, we proposed 5 groups of solutions to develop Son La coffee towards high quality and sustainability, including: Promoting the application of science and technology associated with appropriate support mechanisms and policies; developing the market, strengthening the production, processing and consumption chain linkages in a concentrated, safe and effective direction; building stable raw material areas to serve processing facilities and factories; promoting the development of enterprises, cooperatives and processed products from coffee; strengthening the building of brands, geographical indications, and growing area codes to enhance the value and traceability of Son La coffee.

Entering the 2025 coffee crop year, Son La coffee prices increased at the beginning of the season, clearly affirming the position and potential of this crop. For sustainable development, the province has promoted planning and digitalization of growing areas, promoted centralized processing, and strengthened value chain linkages. This is the foundation that helps Son La maintain its title as the "capital" of Arabica, while affirming the brand of quality, safe, and sustainable coffee in the international market.

Source: https://baosonla.vn/kinh-te/thuc-day-phat-trien-ca-phe-ben-vung-gpLZk2zDg.html