Provincial leaders touring the vermicelli production workshop of Tai Hoan Cooperative - a pioneer in technology renewal and brand building to expand domestic and export markets

As one of the pioneering units in traditional vermicelli processing, Tai Hoan Cooperative (Con Minh Commune) has built a brand with its “Tai Hoan Vermicelli” product, which has achieved a national 5-star OCOP rating. The product is now widely distributed through a nationwide network of agents and is gradually gaining access to several export markets in the region.

According to Ms. Nguyen Thi Hoan, Director of Tai Hoan Cooperative, to meet market requirements, the Cooperative has invested in upgrading its production technology, improving its designs and packaging, stepping up trade promotion, and expanding into export markets. The Cooperative’s goal is to turn Con Minh vermicelli into a signature agricultural product of Thai Nguyen with a firm foothold on Vietnam’s agricultural produce map.

Also choosing the path of innovation as its route to integration, Bac Ha Herbal Material Technology Joint Stock Company (Bac Kan Ward) is focusing on in-depth investment in processing technology and digital transformation. With a total investment of approximately VND 50 billion, the company has built a modern production facility, raising its capacity to 500,000-1 million products per year, with revenue of approximately VND 10 billion.

Provincial leaders praising the technology investment and digital transformation efforts of Bac Ha Herbal Material Technology Joint Stock Company

In 2022, Bac Ha exported its first shipment of approximately 5,000 products to the United States. To date, the company has continued to expand into the markets of Taiwan, China, and Thailand, and has been licensed to market its products in Singapore - one of the markets with very strict requirements on quality and food safety.

Not stopping at its initial results, the company continues to build a development strategy driven by market demand, invest in human resources, renew its technology, and expand sales on digital platforms. “We have identified three core groups of solutions: investing in human resources to research and meet international standards; continuing to invest in machinery and equipment and improving techniques to raise product quality; and, at the same time, closely following consumption trends on e-commerce platforms to develop the products the market needs, rather than merely selling what the company already has” - said Ms. Nguyen Thi Le, Deputy Director of Bac Ha Herbal Material Technology Joint Stock Company.

Alongside Bac Ha, Ha Diep Company Limited (Duc Xuan Ward) is also gradually establishing its own path toward integration by making technology and digital transformation the foundation of its development. The company has invested in a freeze-drying line, applied an ISO quality management system, built an electronic traceability system, and, step by step, standardized its production process and raised the value of its golden camellia tea products. This is not only a condition for meeting the increasingly high demand of the domestic market but also a foundation for accessing international markets.

A representative of Ha Diep Company Limited receiving the Certificate of Recognition as a Typical Provincial Rural Industrial Product

Ms. Ha Minh Doi, Director of Ha Diep Company Limited, said: “In the current context, most activities take place in the digital environment, on digital platforms. Our products must therefore also meet those criteria. Beyond the domestic market, we hope to bring our products to international markets.”

However, integration also means having to meet increasingly stringent standards on quality, raw material areas, and competitiveness. This is a challenge that many agricultural businesses are proactively working to solve. “Not only our company but many other agricultural production units also want to bring their products to international markets. However, the standards of foreign markets are very high. For our golden camellia tea products, we are continuing to study adjustments to our production scale, develop raw material areas, and improve quality to meet export requirements” - said Ms. Ha Minh Doi.

From modest-scale cooperatives and businesses, Tai Hoan, Ha Diep, and Bac Ha are demonstrating a common point: “integration” is not just a matter of taking goods abroad but, first and foremost, a process of changing development thinking. Investing in technology, building sustainable raw material areas, standardizing production processes, and developing products to meet market demand are becoming the foundation for businesses in northern Thai Nguyen Province to gradually take part more deeply in domestic and international value chains, contributing to building a modern, high-value-added, and sustainably developing agricultural sector.