Management of planting area and packaging facility codes is a key point in traceability and geographical indications for a number of major agricultural products of Hoa Binh province in order to meet export conditions. Therefore, issuance of planting area codes as well as good implementation of traceability are identified by the provincial agricultural sector as an opportunity to increase competitiveness of agricultural products in both domestic and export markets.
In recent years, the province has encouraged organisations and individuals to register for planting area and packaging facility codes in order to have more "passports" for the province’s agricultural products to go to the world.
Leaders of the provincial sub-department of crop cultivation and plant protection check cultivation diary of a pomelo household who has been granted a planting area code in Ngoc Luong commune, Yen Thuy district.
In late 2023, farmers in Luong Son district exported the first batch of Dien pomelos to the US market. Before export, the pomelos had been tested to ensure they met 900 food safety inspection criteria according to the requirements of the EU and the regulations of the importing country.
Earlier in the same year, Cao Phong district exported seven tonnes of fresh oranges to the UK market. Sample packages sent to the UK were cleared without any problems with food safety and origin.
So far, under the direction of the province and with support from specialised and local agencies, 389.77 hectares of fruit and five packaging facilities have been granted with export planting area and packaging codes by the plant protection authority and approved by importing countries. Since then, there have been a number of agricultural products that meet all export requirements to the markets of the UK, the US, China, the EU.
In the first six months of 2024, the province's total export volume of agricultural products reached 725 tonnes, with an export value of about 31.6 billion VND, an increase of about 10% over the same period last year.
Nguyen Hong Yen, Director of the sub-department of crop cultivation and plant protection, said that while it is difficult to acquire a planting area code, it is even harder to maintain the required conditions to keep the code. If the management is relaxed, shipments of exported agricultural products will meet regulations of importing countries, leading to a potential risk of reducing market share.
According to data from the Hoa Binh Provincial Party Committee, the industrial production index for the first six months of 2025 is estimated to have increased by 20% compared to the same period last year. This marks the highest year-on-year growth rate for this period since 2020.
In the first six months of 2025, Hoa Binh province’s export turnover was estimated at 1.145 billion USD, marking an 18.11% increase compared to the same period in 2024. Import turnover was estimated at $ 804 million, a 17.15% increase, which helped the province maintain a positive trade balance.
The lives of the ethnic minority farmers in Tan Lac district have gradually improved thanks to the new directions in agricultural production. This is a testament to the collective strength fostered through the professional associations and groups implemented by various levels of the district’s Farmers’ Union.
With the motto the "product quality comes first,” after nearly one year of establishment and operation, Muong village’s Clean Food Agricultural and Commercial Cooperative, located in Cau Hamlet, Hung Son Commune (Kim Boi district), has launched reputable, high-quality agricultural products to the market that are well-received by consumers. The products such as Muong village’s pork sausage, salt-cured chicken, and salt-cured pork hocks have gradually carved out a place in the market and they are on the path to obtaining the OCOP certification.
In the past, the phrase "bumper harvest, rock-bottom prices" was a familiar refrain for Vietnamese farmers engaged in fragmented, small-scale agriculture. But today, a new spirit is emerging across rural areas of Hoa Binh province - one of collaboration, organisation, and collective economic models that provide a stable foundation for production.
Maintaining growing area codes and packing facility codes in accordance with regulations is a mandatory requirement for agricultural products to be eligible for export. Recently, the Department of Agriculture and Environment of Hoa Binh province has intensified technical supervision of designated farming areas and packing facilities to safeguard the "green passport" that enables its products to access international markets.
