Bringing Khe Sanh coffee to the 'big sea'

QTO - In the fertile red soil of Khe Sanh commune, coffee has long been a staple crop, closely associated with people's lives. In recent years, with the formation and development of Khe Sanh Agricultural Cooperative, the Khe Sanh coffee brand has gradually affirmed its position in the market, not only domestically but also for export, carrying with it the aspirations of farmers in the mountainous region of Quang Tri.

The first steps

We made an appointment to meet Ms. Nguyen Thi Hang, Director of Khe Sanh Agricultural Cooperative, as soon as she returned from the National Achievement Exhibition "80 Years of Independence - Freedom - Happiness Journey" held in Hanoi . With a lively and energetic figure, Ms. Hang excitedly shared that participating in the exhibition has helped the Cooperative's product brand become known to many people, especially the main product Khe Sanh coffee.

For her to achieve the results she has today, it is a process of effort, overcoming many difficulties and challenges. After getting married, from her hometown Hai Duong (now Hai Phong City), she followed her husband to Quang Tri in the 2000s. From nothing, she and her husband started a business with coffee trees by chance. That was after watching TV programs about the Central Highlands, which made her research about coffee trees and learn how to germinate and plant them herself.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hang demonstrates how to make and introduce Khe Sanh coffee at the National Achievement Exhibition "80 years of the journey of Independence - Freedom - Happiness" held in Hanoi in September 2025 - Photo: LT

“At that time, my family only had a few acres of land, but when growing coffee for harvest, the product depended on traders, the profit was not high. After much thought, I decided to learn how to process, starting with batches of roasted and ground coffee to test selling semi-processed coffee products. Through many failures, I gradually accumulated experience after collecting coffee from people in the commune, learning about clean processing processes, participating in projects to support sustainable agricultural development and many field trips to the Central Highlands. In March 2019, I and 6 local households established Khe Sanh Agricultural Cooperative,” said Ms. Hang.

From 7 members, Ms. Hang's cooperative now has 30 official members. The cooperative has a raw material area of ​​168 hectares when linking with 115 households in 7 production groups. Of which, the cooperative directly manages 30 hectares of mainly native coffee varieties. On average, each year, the cooperative's coffee area harvests about 1,400-1,800 tons of fresh fruit, which is an abundant source of raw materials for deep processing, creating a closed value chain.

“Since the establishment of the Cooperative, we have determined the path of sustainable development, linking production with the market, building a brand based on quality and international standards. Therefore, the Cooperative has invested in 3 modern factories to serve the production of microbiological fertilizers, processing fresh coffee and processing high-quality coffee. With a system of machinery and advanced processing technology, it will be the premise for the Cooperative to improve the quality of coffee products,” said Ms. Hang.

Conquering difficult markets

Currently, the processing workshop of Khe Sanh Agricultural Cooperative produces many products from local agricultural products such as bananas, pepper, avocado, honey, macadamia, coffee husk tea... However, the most prominent is still the chain of clean, high-quality coffee under the Khe Sanh coffee brand. This is a product that has achieved the national 5-star OCOP certification in 2025, a typical national rural industrial product, and a Vietnamese specialty coffee. In addition, the Cooperative is currently completing the OCOP product recognition dossier for instant coffee products.

The highlight of the cooperative's products is the Khe Sanh coffee brand, which has received US FDI certification, meeting international export standards. In addition to the distribution system in the province, agents in many localities and e-commerce platforms such as Shopee, TikTok... The cooperative has signed cooperation contracts with many large enterprises such as Cat Que Company, Ngoc Khen Company Limited, SLOW Lao Company... with an output of hundreds of tons of coffee beans and roasted coffee each year.

From 2022 to present, Khe Sanh Agricultural Cooperative has exported parchment coffee to Laos and Denmark with stable output, averaging 100 tons/year in the first year and 50 tons/year in the following year. Notably, in 2024, the Cooperative successfully exported a batch of specialty coffee to the US, marking an important milestone in the journey to affirm the Khe Sanh coffee brand on the map of Vietnamese specialty coffee and an important first step for Khe Sanh coffee to affirm its position, gradually appearing in more demanding markets such as Japan, Korea, and the EU.

With the goal of sustainable development, Khe Sanh Agricultural Cooperative not only focuses on output but also pays special attention to the quality of Khe Sanh brand coffee. Therefore, all production processes from growing raw materials to processing and packaging comply with safety standards. Therefore, the output of fresh coffee beans purchased has also increased gradually over the years, in 2025 alone, reaching more than 4,500 tons, processing 100 tons of clean coffee and 500 tons of dry coffee, producing 100 tons of biofertilizer.

Local coffee growing is done by people strictly following the procedures instructed by Khe Sanh Agricultural Cooperative, ensuring raw materials meet export standards - Photo: LT

“We have supported people with thousands of native coffee seedlings, opened dozens of training classes on planting techniques, care, and harvesting according to the correct process. In addition, the cooperative uses processed coffee husks to compost organic fertilizer. After that, this fertilizer is sold at a price 20% cheaper than the market price, and cooperative members are supported with 50% of the price. This method not only protects the environment but also helps reduce farming costs for people,” Ms. Hang shared.

Talking to reporters, Chairman of Khe Sanh Commune People's Committee Thai Thi Nga said that the development of Khe Sanh Agricultural Cooperative is not only the aspiration to reach out with the Khe Sanh coffee brand but also the goal of community development. The proof is that every year, the Cooperative creates regular jobs for 30 workers. The production linkage creates conditions for dozens of ethnic minority households to have stable income. This is also a unit that actively participates in social activities such as building new rural areas, supporting to overcome the consequences of natural disasters, etc.

In the coming time, the locality will continue to support in planning raw material areas, reserving land for the unit to build a factory in a new location to ensure environmental hygiene and connect businesses to consume products... However, to truly bring Khe Sanh coffee to the "big sea", first of all, the unit must strive to build its reputation through quality; continue to invest in technological innovation, expand organic raw material areas, promote the brand and promote trade. At the same time, the unit really needs the support and companionship of all levels and sectors, so that each Khe Sanh brand coffee bean exported is a "pearl", not only having economic value but also the pride and brand of Quang Tri farmers.

Le Truong

Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/kinh-te/202510/dua-ca-phe-khe-sanh-ra-bien-lon-df50c82/