Thai Nguyen tea finds its way to the ocean

Thai Nguyen has long been known as the “First Famous Tea” of Vietnam, its distinctive flavor has become a cultural feature and pride of the midland region. However, in the export market, the value of Thai Nguyen tea is still modest. From the beginning of 2025 until now, the export turnover has only reached about 45,000 USD, a number that is not commensurate with its potential, brand and inherent position.

Harvesting tea produced according to safety standards, meeting the demand for product exports in Tan Cuong tea region ( Thai Nguyen ). Photo: TL

Proactively find directions and diversify products

In the context of deep integration, many enterprises and cooperatives in Thai Nguyen have proactively sought new directions through expanding raw material areas, innovating processing technology and diversifying products. The journey to bring the flavor of Thai Nguyen tea to the world market is gradually taking shape, although there are still many challenges ahead.

In Dai Phuc commune, Hung Thai Trading Company Limited, run by Director Do Manh Hung, is rushing to complete the first batches of tea bags for export to the US market. The contract to supply 5 containers per month with many product lines and diverse flavors is considered an important step forward, reflecting the persistent efforts and aspirations of a young enterprise.

Mr. Do Manh Hung said: We have been attached to tea plants for the past 15 years. Besides the domestic market, the biggest goal now is to conquer demanding markets such as Europe, the US, and Japan. To achieve that, the enterprise must completely change the production process, from raw materials, processing to packaging, labeling, food safety control, pesticide residues, traceability and clean certification. Currently, the company's products have been sent for testing abroad, and when they meet the standards, they will be officially exported.

Enterprises apply the method of harvesting tea by machine to reduce costs and save manual labor.

Unlike traditional domestic tastes that favor dried tea buds, consumers in Europe and the US value convenience and consistency in flavor.

Based on this requirement, Hung Thai Trading Company Limited has boldly applied industrial tea picking technology by machine, at the same time promoting deep processing to develop many product lines such as tea bags, matcha, instant tea. This method optimizes the economic value of each tea leaf and the product meets international standards on quality and food safety.

Khe Coc Safe Tea Cooperative (Vo Tranh Commune) is one of the leading units in organic tea production for export. Since 2017, the Cooperative has exported the first batches to the European market. Although export activities were later interrupted, Chairman of the Board of Directors To Van Khiem has persisted in expanding the raw material area, maintaining the organic production process and making efforts to find new partners.

According to Mr. To Van Khiem, the economic value from export is many times higher than domestic consumption, especially for tea bag products. "If selling dried tea buds domestically is only over 300 thousand VND/kg, then when exporting, the value can increase 2-3 times. More importantly, this helps farmers change their production mindset according to safety, organic standards and achieve international certification" - Mr. Khiem shared.

In reality, the benefits of tea export do not only stop at economic value but also serve as a driving force to promote the application of science and technology, expand employment, increase income for tea growers, and at the same time contribute to promoting the Vietnamese brand in the international market.

Processing tea according to VietGAP standards at La Bang Tea Cooperative. Photo: TL

Aspiration for "billion dollar" crops

Comparing Thai Nguyen tea with other tea regions in the country, we can clearly see both opportunities and challenges. In Lam Dong, Bao Loc tea region has successfully built a brand of high-class Oolong tea and green tea, exporting to Japan and Taiwan with a value of tens of millions of USD each year. This success is created thanks to concentrated raw material areas, modern processing technology and a methodical marketing strategy.

In the Northern Midlands and Mountains region, Phu Tho province has emerged as a major black tea production center of the country, exporting to more than 50 countries, especially South Asian and Middle Eastern markets, with advantages from wide linkage scale and stable supply.

Thai Nguyen has a prominent advantage in terms of its long-standing tea brand and is widely known to consumers. However, the province still lacks large-scale concentrated organic raw material areas and has limitations in synchronization of processing technology and value chain linkage. These are weaknesses that need to be overcome soon if we want to improve our competitiveness in the international market.

Thai Nguyen tea brand is gradually expanding, aiming to conquer international markets.

Mr. Nguyen Huy Hoang, Deputy Director of Thai Nguyen Department of Industry and Trade, said: Bringing tea to the world cannot rely solely on the individual efforts of each enterprise, but it is necessary to diversify products, regularly update market information, and take advantage of free trade agreements to open the door for Thai Nguyen tea. Along with that, it is necessary to promote on e-commerce platforms, build strong brands associated with modern packaging and standardize quality according to international standards.

Currently, many localities in the province have been implementing value chain linkage models, from building safe raw material areas, applying VietGAP, GlobalGAP to developing OCOP products and aiming for organic standards. This is considered an important foundation to create tea products that are competitive enough in the international market.

With nearly 24,000 hectares of tea, annual output reaching hundreds of thousands of tons, Thai Nguyen has all the conditions to develop tea into a key export industry. When green tea buds are processed properly, wearing the brand name "Thai Nguyen", not only does it spread the flavor of the homeland but it also conveys the aspiration for integration and expansion of an entire land.

Compared to Lam Dong or Phu Tho, Thai Nguyen is still at the starting line in the large-scale export race. However, with the tradition of “First-class tea”, the perseverance of tea growers and strategic vision in developing the industry, there is every reason to believe that in the near future, Thai Nguyen tea will affirm its position on the global agricultural map, contributing to the goal of making tea a “billion-dollar” industry in Vietnam.

Source: https://baothainguyen.vn/kinh-te/202510/che-thai-nguyen-tim-duong-ra-bien-lon-cd276b6/