Ba Vì Medicinal Herb Cooperative Explores OCOP Product Development
Ba Vì has medicinal plant resources and local traditional knowledge, but cultivation, harvesting and supply remain fragmented, making reliable supply and quality control difficult. A local cooperative is connecting growers, researchers and businesses to explore herb processing and OCOP product development.
Ba Vì has medicinal plant resources, and the local Dao community has preserved knowledge of their use. However, herb cultivation, harvesting and supply remain largely fragmented. Output and quality vary between households, creating difficulties for a steady supply of raw materials, processing and market development.
Hợp tác xã Nông Dược Dân Tộc Miền Núi Ba Vì is contacting local households and other stakeholders to explore ways to cooperate in the medicinal herb industry. Under the cooperative’s proposed approach, households would grow and harvest the herbs, researchers would provide technical support, the cooperative would organize production, and businesses would take part in processing, branding and market development. The parties still need to agree on how they will work together and divide responsibilities and benefits.
Local residents prepare and dry medicinal herbs after harvesting.（VietVance）
Cooperative representative Nguyễn Văn Nhận said that sustainable development of the medicinal herb industry requires connecting households, researchers, cooperatives and businesses across every stage, from raw materials and research to processing and sales. The article also proposes using knowledge of medicinal herbs and Dao culture to develop visitor experiences that could create additional channels for displaying and selling products; the details of how to organize these activities have yet to be worked out.
Nguyễn Văn Nhận discusses cooperation on the production, processing and sale of medicinal herb products with businesses and researchers.（VietVance）
Developing medicinal herb products also requires consistent raw material quality. Differences in cultivation, harvesting and storage methods can affect subsequent processing and product quality. To develop OCOP products that meet the requirements of the One Commune One Product program, the parties must identify specific products and improve production processes, quality control, traceability, packaging and trademarks. Local medicinal herb resources have development potential, but whether products can achieve a steady supply and find markets still depends on this groundwork.
Source: VietVance
