The northern province of Bắc Giang is building trademarks for local farm produce with an aim of reaching more markets. — VNA/VNS Photo

BẮC GIANG — The northern province of Bắc Giang is building trademarks for local farm produce to reach more markets and raise the value of agro-forestry produce exports by 8 per cent a year to US$200 million by 2030, reported the provincial People's Committee. 

The province is also intensifying activities to promote its key and typical agricultural products and their potential, particularly via e-commerce sites, while encouraging businesses, cooperatives and people to sell products online. Support is given to them regarding building geographical indications, trademarks and origin tracing. 

The locality has tried to improve the capacity of collecting and analysing market data to help build production, trade promotion and product sales plans. Farmers will receive assistance connecting with processing firms and distribution networks to form a close-ended chain from production to consumption gradually. 

Bắc Giang will pay attention to building distribution channels and assisting in selling agricultural products on commercial electronic websites. It will also review the planning of points-of-sale of speciality and signature products and wholesale markets for agricultural products in several localities in the province. 

The province will promote the export of local signature products such as lychee, orange, pomelo, processed vegetables, pork, chicken and processed wood to China via official channels while exploring new markets such as the European Union (EU), US, Australia, Japan, the Republic of Korea (RoK), ASEAN and the Middle East.

The province now has eight key agricultural products, namely thiều lychee, chicken, pork, citrus fruit, high-quality rice, vegetable, peanuts and fish, 14 typical products and 30 products of good potential. Among them, 40 products have had their trademarks protected. 

In addition, some have earned geographical indication protection abroad, like Lục Ngạn lychee is protected in Japan, the Republic of Korea, Thailand, the US, Australia and Singapore. Chũ and Kế dry rice noodles are protected in Japan, the RoK, Thailand, and Yên Thế range chicken in Singapore, China and Laos.

Bắc Giang also has 60 products with trademarks and 155 One Commune One Product products meeting three-star standards and above. 

Since 2019, Bắc Giang has promoted farm produce trade in various forms, like holding seminars, conferences and festivals, introducing on websites of the province's agencies and localities, and participating in trade fairs.  

Each year, the provincial People's Committee issues a plan to promote the sale of key agricultural products, especially thiều lychee, and works closely with centrally-run ministries and agencies. 

Since obtaining a certificate of geographical indication (GI) from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan in March 2021, thiều lychee grown in Lục Ngạn District has seen its competitiveness and export volume significantly rising.

The fruit is the first Vietnamese farm produce to be granted such a certificate by Japan, with negotiations lasting nearly three years. In addition to Japan, thiều lychee has already earned geographical protection in six others, namely China, Laos, Cambodia, the RoK, Singapore, and Australia. The protection is like a 'passport' to help speed up customs clearance processes, raise prices, and improve the value of the farm produce.

Official data showed that 48.5 tonnes of the Lục Ngạn lychee were shipped to Japan and 293.5 tonnes to other markets (excluding China) in 2020. The figures rose to 56.7 and 9,500 tonnes in 2021. This year, Bắc Giang exported 164.4 tonnes of the fruit to Japan, 36 tonnes to the US, and more than 1,800 tonnes to other markets.

The province also focuses on expanding the cultivation area of farm produce, meeting VietGAP, GlobalGAP and organic standards to yield quality products with high productivity for domestic consumption and export. 

The authorities have supported the building of trademarks and marketing of hi-tech farm produce to meet the demand of domestic and foreign markets, including those with strict requirements, such as the US, Australia, Japan, the RoK and the EU. As a result, several products have gained a strong foothold, like lychee, processed vegetables, Hoàng Lương water dropwort, Yên Thế tea, hill chicken and clean pork. 

Apart from export markets, Bắc Giang has called on major domestic and foreign groups, supermarket chains and shopping outlets like Aeon, Central Group, Mega Market, Lotte, Big C, Saigon Coop, Vinmart and Hapro, and several farms produce exporters in and outside the province such as Origon, Vifoco, GOC and Global companies to engage in partnerships in production and processing or sign contracts for product sales and exports. — VNS