Tan Cuong tea zone transforms toward organic orientations

When tea farmers change their methods

Beyond developing tourism, Tien Yen Tea and Community Tourism Cooperative also plays a crucial role in establishing a high-quality raw-material zone.

Currently, the cooperative directly manages 3 hectares of tea and links with local households to develop a raw material zone of over 30 hectares. Among these, 5 hectares have achieved organic certification, while the remaining area is produced under VietGAP standards. The linkage model helps locals stabilize outlets, uniformly apply technical protocols, and step-by-step elevate product quality.

According to Mr. Bui Trong Dai, the cooperative not only purchases raw materials but also guides member households in implementing synchronized production processes, ensuring quality from caretaking and harvesting to processing. As tourism develops, local residents gain additional income from experiential services, tea sales, and local specialties sold right in their locality.

As one of the workers directly handling tea in the cooperative's raw material zone, Ms. Duong Thi Hong (Y Na 2 Hamlet, Tan Cuong Commune) shared that the biggest change she feels is that workers no longer come into frequent contact with toxic chemicals as before. Though the work demands greater meticulousness, the working environment is safer, and tea growers feel at ease knowing their own families are the ones using the products.

According to Ms. Hong, previously each household produced in its own way, lacking coordination, resulting in non-uniform farming protocols. Overusing inorganic fertilizers for a long time caused soil fertility to degrade, tea plants to grow poorly, and yields to gradually decline year after year. Not a few tea areas fell into states of "exhaustion," forcing locals to invest more while economic efficiency remained disproportionate.

"Since participating in linkages with the cooperative, we have been guided to apply safe production protocols, using organic fertilizers to improve the soil, enhance microflora, and restore natural fertility. After a period of transition, the soil is healthier, tea plants are more stable, and yields have increased again. What is more important is that tea workers no longer have to worry about exposure to toxic chemicals as before," Ms. Hong shared.

Beyond improving the yield and quality of the raw material zone, farming with an organic orientation also helps lay the foundation for the cooperative to develop community tourism. Lush green tea hills, fresh environments, and safe production processes have become advantages that attract tourists seeking experiences, thereby increasing the value of tea plants and generating additional employment and income for local residents.

From green tea hills to sustainable livelihoods

Tan Cuong currently has approximately 1,000 hectares of tea, mostly produced toward safe orientations, creating a stable raw material source for processing facilities. Beyond being a key crop that brings income to locals, tea is also a cultural symbol, helping shape Thai Nguyen's famous brand in domestic and international markets.

In that development process, cooperatives increasingly affirm their central role by organizing production, linking consumption, driving deep processing, and expanding experiential services. Attaching raw material zones to community tourism not only increases the value of tea products but also creates additional jobs, diversifies revenue sources, and retains young people in their hometowns to develop the economy.

In 2026, Thai Nguyen strives to increase the area under Good Agricultural Practices (VietGAP)- certified tea and organic standards by 2,000 hectares or more.

This is considered a fairly high target; however, with numerous mechanisms and incentive policies for the development of the tea industry, Thai Nguyen is projected to achieve its set goal. Along with other support policies, Thai Nguyen Province maintains policies supporting certification for VietGAP and other GAP standards with 100% funding support for initial standard certification (up to 6 million VND/ha) and 100% funding support for recertification (up to 4 million VND/ha), applicable to establishments participating in tea production, processing, and consumption (minimum production scale from 5 hectares).

Thai Nguyen currently has over 6,440 hectares of tea meeting VietGAP standards and over 125 hectares meeting organic standards. Implementing Resolution No. 11 (dated February 3, 2025) of the Provincial Party Executive Committee on tea industry development for the 2025-2030 period, Thai Nguyen set out the target that by 2030, the entire province will possess 24.5 thousand hectares of tea with fresh bud yields reaching 300 thousand tons, in which 70% of the area will be produced under VietGAP and organic standards.

$ 1 = VND 26,320 - Source: Vietcombank.