Building geographical indication for Khe Sanh coffee

Coffee made its first appearance in the land of Huong Hoa (Quang Tri province) at the beginning of the twentieth century. In 1978, Khe Sanh Coffee Farm planted many coffee varieties, and through the process of natural selection, the Catimor coffee variety showcased outstanding characteristics in terms of adaptability to the environment, resistance to rust disease, high and relatively stable yield, also good quality. Since then the Catimor coffee acreage has continued to expand, now reaching 4,421 ha. And now Catimor is a famous coffee variety not only in Vietnam but also in the world through the brand "Khe Sanh coffee".

Identifying coffee as a key crop to promote local socio-economic development, for many years Huong Hoa district has supported farmers to build clean agricultural product areas, creating conditions for enterprises to invest in the product processing industry. These actions have contributed to promoting the development of raw material areas, creating jobs for workers, and enhancing added value for coffee products in the area.

But until now domestic consumers still do not know much about coffee products called "Khe Sanh". Huong Hoa coffee products are facing the risk of losing their brand name mainly because the commune has yet to develop the name "Khe Sanh coffee" widely throughout the country. The products lack linkage in production and consumption along the value chain; the output market is not stable, the post-harvest processing and preservation work has not been well-developed; there is no system of tools for product quality control and management; Khe Sanh coffee has yet received geographical indication protection.

Coffee in Huong Hoa has its own distinctive quality which is related to the ecological conditions of the production area. Building a geographical indication for Huong Hoa coffee products is thus deemed an essential direction.

The Soils and Fertilizers Research Institute (SFRI) has recently cooperated with Quang Tri Department of Science and Technology, Huong Hoa District People's Committee, Pun Coffee Company and Khe Sanh Coffee Association to carry out the task of "Registration for geographical indication protection, management and development for Khe Sanh coffee of Quang Tri province”.

Accordingly, in 3 years from 2022 - 2024 the project implements a series of activities: establish intellectual property rights and geographical indication "Khe Sanh" for coffee products of Huong Hoa district associated with registration of growing area codes, control of quality and origin of the protected product; develop conditions and facilities for management and exploitation, develop geographical indications suitable to local and regional conditions as well as the characteristics of the protected product; building a system of tools for management and quality control of protected product; developing a coffee production, processing and consumption chain in order to improve quality, increase added value and ensure stable output for Huong Hoa coffee products; further promote the geographical indication "Khe Sanh" for coffee products in Huong Hoa to expand and develop the product consumption market, improve the value and competitiveness of the product in the market.

“The project will gather information and documents related to coffee products along with production and business areas; make a survey on the need for registration, management and development of geographical indications; collect statistics on the number of coffee production and trading establishments in the province.

“Competent units will analyze the quality of Huong Hoa coffee products and surrounding areas, the natural and human conditions related to the signature features of Huong Hoa coffee products; develop a map of coffee production areas eligible for geographical indication registration; design place-name logo associated with a system to identify geographical indications; prepare dossiers for registration of geographical indication,” said Ms. Thai Thi Nga, Head of Technology and Intellectual Property Management Department, Quang Tri Department of Science and Technology.

When the project is successfully implemented, Huong Hoa coffee products will be protected under the geographical indication "Khe Sanh". The products will then have their value and reputation promoted in the market, helping to counter the abuse of origin signs and ensuring the legal use rights of organizations as well as individuals eligible to use the geographical indication. This is also a way to preserve, maintain and develop a local specialty product, contributing to promoting Huong Hoa coffee production toward sustainable development.