The workshop was attended by representatives of provincial departments and agencies, cooperatives, enterprises, and coffee-growing households across the province.

In recent years, coffee has not only provided a stable source of income but also played an important role in restructuring the agricultural sector, increasing added value, promoting exports, and building local agricultural brands. To date, the province has 24,000 hectares of coffee, accounting for over 41% of the total Arabica coffee area in the country. Coffee in Son La is mainly cultivated in the former Son La city, Mai Son, Thuan Chau, Sop Cop, and Yen Chau.

In recent years, Son La has introduced policies to support coffee development, focusing on implementing the VietGAP process; building the Son La coffee brand; and developing the value chain by supporting new varieties, investing in raw material area infrastructure, issuing planting area codes, advancing processing technology, strengthening production linkages, promoting trade, supporting exports, and expanding markets.

To date, seven enterprises and cooperatives have been granted the right to use the geographical indication “Son La Coffee,” with exports reaching 20 countries and territories, creating stable jobs and incomes for more than 18,000 coffee-growing households. Two high-tech coffee application zones covering over 1,039 hectares have been recognised; five coffee products have received OCOP (one commune one product) certification; and nine industrial-scale processing facilities are in operation.

Each year, enterprises and cooperatives process over 5,405 tonnes of green coffee. Son La’s processed coffee products are mainly green beans, of which over 95% are exported, while around 5% are processed into roasted coffee, ground coffee, instant coffee, coffee filter bags, and cascara tea for domestic and international markets.

Alongside these advantages, coffee development still faces challenges: Many plantations are old, with low productivity, requiring replanting - a process that demands significant capital, long periods of time, and advanced techniques. Coffee production remains fragmented, making it difficult to apply uniform technical standards, mechanisation, and value chain linkages.

Cooperatives lack the capacity to purchase the entire output, forcing many farmers to sell through intermediaries. Post-harvest preservation also poses risks, as storage facilities, drying, and preservation systems remain inconsistent, which can reduce product quality.

At the workshop, delegates focused on discussing and proposing solutions to make coffee a key crop. These included advising the provincial People’s Committee on mechanisms to support seed varieties for the coffee replanting programme; planning cultivation zones and managing seed quality; supporting trade promotion to expand export markets; and investing in research and advanced processing technologies to enhance product value. Enterprises, cooperatives, and farming households were encouraged to strengthen linkages along the value chain and comply with the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) on deforestation-free coffee.

The Son La Union of Science and Technology Associations acquired the delegates’ opinions and will compile and report them to the provincial authorities as recommendations for coffee development solutions in the coming years.