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.
In Lac Thuy district, communes have been succeeded in promoting their One Commune-One Product (OCOP) products while others are still struggling to position their typical farming products in market. Some communes in the district still fail to have their products met OCOP programme’s requirements, while others have seen their certifications expired.
The inspectorate agency of Hoa Binh province has issued Official Dispatch No. 1090/TTr-PCTN to provincial departments, agencies, localities, business associations, enterprises, and investors regarding measures to improve informal component indexes of the Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI).
Hoa Binh is taking concrete steps to improve its investment environment, with a strong focus on supporting businesses, settling obstacles for strategic investors, and creating opportunities for robust development in the coming years.
Under the blazing early summer sun, the construction site of Nhuan Trach Industrial Park (IP) in Luong Son district is abuzz with activities from dawn to dusk, a testament to the determination of the investor to meet their construction targets on schedule.
