(VOVWORLD) -Vietnam ranks second in the world for coffee export volume, which last year reached a record 1.7 million tons, worth more than 4 billion USD. Vietnamese coffee is sold in dozens of major markets around the world. But Vietnam has no coffee brand in the list of the 10 most expensive coffees in the world. A seminar was held early this month in Ho Chi Minh City for coffee farmers and traders to find better ways to develop brands and increase the value of Vietnamese coffee.
 Dinh Vinh Cuong, Chairman of the Vietnam International Entrepreneur Networking Club (Photo: VNA) |
Attendees of the workshop, called “Increasing value for Vietnamese coffee, how?”, underlined the need to find ways to build Vietnamese coffee brands.
Dinh Vinh Cuong, Chairman of the Vietnam International Entrepreneur Networking Club, called on businesses to work with farmers to create value chains from producers to the final stage.
It’s necessary to invest in production to meet the requirements of the consumer market, especially demanding markets, Cuong said, adding that more investment in building a brand for Vietnamese coffee is needed because few companies are building brands for coffee exports.
“We need companies specialized in creating Vietnamese coffee brands. Once our brand grows, Vietnamese coffee value will also go up. We have many coffee growing areas. What we need is to develop regional brands attached to geographical indications to create added value for our coffee products,” said Cuong.
According to the Vietnam Coffee and Cocoa Association, Vietnam has 710,000 hectares of coffee, of which 650,000 is harvestable. But the coffee growing area is fragmented and not managed as one large raw material area to meet export standards.
Cao Xuan Thu Van, Vice President of the Vietnam Farmers Association, insists on the need to reorganize production and establish trade association branches.
Farmers must accept long-term investment with the possibility of initial losses preceding eventual profit, and functional agencies will help farmers build raw material areas.
 Doan Ngoc Co, Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Gia Lai province (Photo: baodantoc.vn) |
Doan Ngoc Co, Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Gia Lai province, said that to increase the value of coffee, it’s necessary to increase the input value and output value of products.
Top priority should be given to reducing input costs, such as seedlings, agricultural materials, and fertilizers, improving productivity and product quality, limiting the use of pesticides to minimize chemical residues, and promoting mechanization in coffee growing.
“We must turn out coffee products that meet the standards set for safe coffee. If we keep following traditional standards, our products can’t be sold. We must make immediate changes,” said Co.
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Minh Hoan said increasing coffee value depends on better processing as wel as better coffee trees.
It’s also important to realign product lines to consumer trends and market needs, said Hoan.
“We should reposition our coffee products in the world market. Other countries make a variety of products from coffee, but Vietnam hasn’t done that yet. Our coffee products are principally raw materials. We still have a large space to develop image and value for our coffee," said Hoan.
The coffee industry contributes 3% of Vietnam’s GDP, providing jobs and stable income for more than 600,000 farm households in Vietnam. Developing a Vietnamese coffee brand will boost the industry’s contribution to the national economy.