OCOP - raising the value of agricultural products

(BP Portal) - “One Commune One Product” (OCOP) is a vital program aiming to develop the rural areas' economy by exploiting and maximizing internal resources to promote agricultural products and increase added value. To date, OCOP products have been affirming the brand name of Binh Phuoc agricultural products day by day.

True quality

Starting a business in 2019 with coffee and salted roasted cashew nuts under the brand Nham Nhung, Nham Nhung cashew nut products were granted a certificate of 3-star OCOP standard by the Provincial People's Committee in 2021. A year later, these products got upgraded to 4-star OCOP, and Nham Nhung coffee was also certified 3-star OCOP at the end of December 2022. The above results are achieved thanks to the continuous efforts of Nham Nu Ngoc Nhung, owner of the Nham Nhung production facility in Thanh An commune, Hon Quan district.

Nhung is a teacher and also passionate about business. Nhung shared that when starting her business, she faced many difficulties, especially the limited time because she still had to teach in classes. Also, because she did her research, many batches of roasted cashews and coffee were spoiled and burned. Her capital kept decreasing, and she had to borrow money to continue her business, but she was determined not to give up. After perseverance, she succeeded, and now both products are OCOP certified.

According to Nhung, it is necessary to go through a long process, work, research, and learn from experience to have quality products. The production process must also ensure the selection of input materials for the packaging of products. To have quality coffee products, she carefully selected the source of input materials, then removed impurities from them. When roasting, she adjusts the temperature and checks the product regularly, so the coffee is not overheated, creating a delicious and aromatic flavor. Nham Nhung pure coffee has four types of products with different bitterness and lightness depending on user needs. Depending on the type, their selling price ranges from 140-200 thousand VND/kg. “The facility has received a lot of orders since the certificate was issued. We have to work overtime to meet this demand,” said Nguyen Thi Cuc, a Nham Nhung Production Facility worker.

With her passion for business, Nhung has promoted trade, brand promotion, and expanded consumption markets. At the same time, she has also invested in purchasing more machinery and equipment to gradually expand the scale of production, deeply processing both cashew and coffee products. The comments and sharing of customers and users are the "key" to helping her facility improve its production and preparation techniques, creating better quality products.

Truong Van Thanh, the owner of the Nhu Hoang salted roasted cashew production facility in Tho Son commune, Bu Dang district, said his salted roasted cashew nut products were also certified 4-star OCOP in 2021. Since then, his facility has monthly produced and distributed about 2.5 tons of finished cashew kernels to provinces and cities from South to North. The most significant advantage of OCOP is that many customers trust the product and order more. “When a product achieves 4-star OCOP certification, it has a brand name and is certified for local quality products. Therefore, we will sell more products, increase revenue, and workers will have stable jobs, "- Thanh emphasized.

Core values of OCOP products

With the view that developing the economy of the rural areas is a central and cross-cutting task in the nation's socio-economic development strategy, the Prime Minister issued Decision No. 490/QD-TTg approving the" One product per commune for the period 2018-2020” Program on May 7, 2018. This project is a rural economic development program that promotes internal resources and adds value, increases the income of rural residents, and contributes to the construction of new-style rural areas.

After nearly four years of implementing the program, Binh Phuoc has had 96 products certified to meet 3-star and 4-star OCOP standards by the Provincial People's Committee. The subjects learned, researched, and deeply processed each product to create real quality, bringing its characteristics to each locality and business. This benefit is also the core value of OCOP products that the subjects worked hard to build. In 2026-2030, Binh Phuoc strives for all products in the province's OCOP product groups to participate in the OCOP Program.

The OCOP program can undoubtedly open up great opportunities for businesses, cooperatives, cooperative groups, and households in Binh Phuoc to promote product development and market expansion. To improve production capacity and product quality to meet customer requirements, the units also strive to produce products that meet consumer and environmental safety criteria, especially when organic quality is enhanced. As Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Tran Thanh Nam, Chairman of the National OCOP Program Product Evaluation and Classification Council, once emphasized: “The core value of OCOP products are the true quality, not the title of the number 1 agricultural product in Vietnam”./.