Consumers browse and select dairy products at a COBOVAMILK product showroom.

From fresh milk produced in Ba Vì, Con Bò Vàng Ba Vì Milk JSC (COBOVAMILK) has gradually transformed from traditional production into modern processing, building a distinctive brand and expanding its market. In 2026, five of the company’s products were recognised as five-star OCOP products at the national level, affirming their quality while opening up new opportunities for the Ba Vì milk brand to reach wider markets and create greater value for local dairy farmers and the community.

From Ba Vì milk to a five-star OCOP brand

Ba Vì has long been known as one of northern Việt Nam’s major dairy farming areas. In Suối Hai Commune, fresh milk from local dairy farms has become the raw material for a wide range of distinctive products, contributing to a milk brand closely associated with the locality.

The story of COBOVAMILK began in 2007, when Đào Công Trường left his job in sales for a foreign dairy company and returned to his hometown to establish Trường Vũ Milk Cake Production Facility.

A technician checks and monitors equipment on the company’s production line.

The decision to start his own business came from a simple observation. While conducting market surveys, Truong realised that Ba Vì’s milk cakes and yoghurt were of good quality but were mainly sold at tourist destinations in Sơn Tây and the former Ba Vi District.

“I used to work in sales for a foreign dairy company. While conducting market surveys, I realised that Ba Vì’s milk cakes and yoghurt were very good, but they were mainly sold around tourist destinations in Sơn Tây and the former Ba Vì District. I thought, why not bring our hometown’s specialty products to a wider market?” Trường recalled.

In the early days, every stage of production was carried out manually. Milk was cooked using traditional stoves, while the milk cakes were rolled and packaged by hand.

“For every 100kg of fresh milk, only about 13kg of milk cakes could be produced after the milk was concentrated. Since everything was done by hand, production capacity was very limited,” Trường said.

The products, however, quickly gained market acceptance. Distributors placed increasingly large orders, particularly during winter, holidays and the Lunar New Year. This encouraged the company to invest in machinery, expand production and gradually shift from traditional methods to industrial-scale manufacturing.

In 2009, Ba Vì Milk Cake JSC was established. A decade later, in 2019, Con Bò Vàng Ba Vì Milk JSC was founded, marking a new stage in the company’s development.

From its traditional milk cake, COBOVAMILK has expanded its product range to include pasteurised fresh milk, drinking yoghurt, black sticky rice yoghurt and caramel, as well as new varieties of milk cake such as matcha, red bean, chocolate and special-flavour milk cakes.

One of the company’s notable innovations is freeze-dried yoghurt. According to Trường, the product is processed using freeze-drying technology at temperatures of around minus 40 degrees Celsius, helping preserve nutrients in the milk while allowing the product to be stored at room temperature for up to 12 months. This is an important advantage for products that need to be transported to distant markets.

Dairy products are processed using specialised equipment in a closed production system that meets food safety requirements.

Alongside product innovation, the company has strengthened quality control from raw materials to processing. COBOVAMILK has invested in modern production lines, adopted the ISO 22000:2018 food safety management standard and introduced QR-code traceability. Consumers can use the codes to quickly check information about the origin of the products.

In 2026, nine products from Hà Nội were recognised as national five-star OCOP products, with five of them produced by COBOVAMILK. The company also has 15 products rated four-star OCOP at the municipal level.

According to Trường, maintaining product quality and distinctiveness is the key to building a sustainable brand. Ba Vì has its own climate and soil conditions, while the Ba Vì Research Centre for Cattle and Grassland provides support in developing high-yield cattle breeds. These factors provide a foundation for a distinctive local milk supply.

From selling fresh milk as a raw material, local dairy farmers and businesses are now becoming more deeply involved in the value chain through processing, brand development and market expansion. As a result, greater value is being generated locally from the region’s milk resources.

COBOVAMILK currently produces 27 dairy products, including milk cakes, yoghurt, pasteurised fresh milk and caramel, five of which have received five-star OCOP certification.

Adding value to products, creating value for the community

An important feature of COBOVAMILK’s development is that the company has linked business growth with social responsibility rather than focusing solely on production and commercial activities.

The expansion of production has created more jobs for local residents while providing additional outlets for dairy farmers. This is an important link in the value chain, helping farmers achieve greater stability and improve their incomes.

Guided by the philosophy of “building a healthy community”, COBOVAMILK has in recent years worked with local authorities and social organisations on a range of social welfare activities. The company has supported disadvantaged families and households affected by natural disasters and disease, contributed to scholarship and talent development funds, and supported activities related to gratitude for national contributors, culture, sports and rural infrastructure development.

These activities have been maintained alongside the company’s production and business growth, strengthening the links between the enterprise, workers, dairy farmers and the local community.

The company’s contributions have also been recognised through a number of awards received by its director. Trường has received the Lương Đình Của Award for outstanding young farmers, was named one of Hà Nội’s ten outstanding young people in 2014, and was recognised as an Outstanding Farmer of Hanoi in 2023, among other honours.

The COBOVAMILK story demonstrates that when a local product is developed in the right direction, the value created extends far beyond the final product. Fresh milk provides the raw material; processing adds value for the company; the company creates stable outlets for dairy farmers; and the wider community benefits through employment, income and social programmes.

COBOVAMILK promotes its dairy and other OCOP products to consumers through e-commerce channels.

Amid the ongoing digital transformation, the company is also expanding its distribution channels through e-commerce and online platforms, bringing Ba Vì’s OCOP products closer to consumers in different parts of Việt Nam.

These developments are also laying the groundwork for COBOVAMILK to explore overseas markets. Products with longer shelf lives, such as freeze-dried yoghurt, offer greater flexibility for transportation to distant destinations, while the five-star OCOP certification helps strengthen the brand’s recognition and credibility.

From a small handmade milk cake facility in 2007, COBOVAMILK has gradually developed into a dairy processing enterprise with a diverse product portfolio, modern technology and a brand closely associated with Ba Vì.

The recognition of five products as national five-star OCOP products in 2026 marks an important milestone in the company’s efforts to improve quality, adopt new technologies and build its brand. Behind these certified products, however, is also the story of a local raw-material area, dairy farmers and a community working together to create greater value.

From Ba Vi, the story of Con Bò Vàng demonstrates a promising path for Việt Nam’s OCOP products: starting with local resources and distinctive values, enhancing them through technology and quality, building a brand through trust, and gradually reaching wider markets at home and abroad.

* This article was produced in cooperation with the Hanoi Office for Coordination of the New-style Rural Development Programme.