(HBO) –Those who had a chance to taste Muong Chieng rice in Da Bac district, Hoa Binh province, are sure to remember its good taste. If cooked with a right water ratio, the rice is fragrant and soft, which tastes good even with only fish sauce. It is the reason why anyone who goes on working trips to Muong Chieng looks to buy this kind of rice to bring home.
Xa Van Lam, head of Ban Ha hamlet,
said the rice is good for both home use and selling. People from other localities
buy this rice for use at home or as gift. Local farmers now want to cultivate
only this rice variety – called the J02, which is planted in almost all areas
of farming land in the commune. Rice fields in the locality are green with nice
fragrance coming into hamlets.
"My family has 3,000 sq.m of rice
fields. We harvested 40 bags of rice, each weighing
45 kg, which translated into
a productivity of more than 8 tonnes of rice per ha during the past
winter-spring crop,” he said, adding that J02 has become a special rice variety
of Muong Chieng. The commune now has
14.5 ha of land cultivated with this rice
variety.
Xa Van Hung, Chairman of the Muong Chieng People’s Committee, said water
rice is the main plant of Muong Chieng commune where weather and soil
conditions are suitable for rice cultivation. Agriculture is the traditional
means of living, and local farmers are hard-working. In the past, locals used
to cultivate hybrid rice varieties such as Nhi uu 838, which had stable
productivity but rice seeds and cultivation materials cost a lot. Over the past
several years, the commune piloted J02, a purebred rice variety provided by the
Agricultural Genetics Institute. With the support of the district, in the 2017
spring crop, Muong Chieng continued to cultivate the rice variety in
8 ha of land with the
participation of 50 households in Na Muoi, Ban Ha, Na Phang and Na Nguom
hamlets.
Dao Village’s honey – a product certified with a 3-star OCOP (One Commune One Product) rating by Thong Nhat Agricultural Cooperative in Dao Village (Hoa Binh City) – is highly regarded by consumers for its quality, richness, and variety in packaging. The distinctively sweet taste of Dao Village’s honey leaves a lasting impression on anyone who has tried it.
In alignment with Project No. 07-DA/TU, issued by the Hoa Binh provincial Party Committee on November 1, 2021, Lac Thuy district has actively promoted investment and supported the sustainable development of its industrial and handicraft sectors during the 2021–2025 period. Alongside this, the district has remained committed to preserving and revitalising traditional craft villages.
Located in the northern part of Lac Thuy district, with a temperate climate and fertile soil, Phu Thanh commune has great potential and advantages in growing tea. The long-standing experience, combined with strict adherence to organic farming practices in the tea gardens, ensures that the dried tea products from Phu Thanh and Lac Thuy as a whole are sold out immediately upon production, providing a stable and prosperous life for the local people.
Amid efforts to streamline the administrative apparatus, Hoa Binh province has intensified measures to address challenges in land clearance, resettlement support, and infrastructure investment, aiming to speed up the progress of key projects.
Hoa Binh province has posted an unprecedented economic growth rate of 12.76% in the first quarter of 2025, marking its highest quarterly performance to date and positioning it as the second fastest-growing locality in the country, trailing only Bac Giang province.
Under current regulations, products in the One Commune – One Product (OCOP) programme that are rated three stars or higher must undergo re-evaluation every three months. However, in reality, some of these products fail to consistently meet the required standards, raising concerns about the sustainability of their OCOP certification. This underscores the urgent need for producers to enhance product quality and gradually develop their OCOP products into strong, marketable brands.
