Beyond elevating land use value and boosting public income, coffee and macadamia contribute to constructing a green, sustainable commercial agricultural sector while creating stable livelihoods for highland communities.

Amidst rainy season days, work proceeds urgently across hill slopes in Búng Lao commune as residents seize favorable weather to care for newly planted coffee and macadamia acreage. Rows of young green trees stretching across hillsides bring hopes of bountiful harvests while reflecting shifts in public production mindsets. Converting from unstable upland rice fields, Lò Văn Pản’s family in Hồng Sọt village, Búng Lao commune boldly switched to coffee cultivation. To date, the family holds 7 ha of coffee, with over 3 ha yielding stable harvests. Consecutive years of good crops and favorable prices significantly boosted family income, enabling him to invest in garden renovation, house repairs, and his children’s education.

Lò Văn Pản shared: “This year my family continues planting 4 ha of new coffee, supported by the State with seeds, fertilizer, and technical guidance, so we feel reassured expanding our acreage. Hopefully, in a few years, coffee will continue bringing stable income.”

In Búng Lao commune, hundreds of households have converted low-efficiency production land to coffee and macadamia. Currently, the entire commune hosts nearly 770 ha of coffee - including over 450 ha being harvested - and 250 ha of macadamia. In 2026, Búng Lao commune was assigned to plant 400 ha of new coffee and 400 ha of macadamia. By now, the locality completed planting 400 ha of coffee while residents self-planted an additional 400 ha, raising total newly planted coffee acreage to 800 ha. For the 400 ha of macadamia, residents received seedlings and deployed planting, with the commune striving to complete planting across the entire area by July 30.

While Búng Lao shines in coffee development, Sáng Nhè commune step-by-step affirms the efficiency of intercropping coffee with macadamia. In 2020, Chảo A Cấu’s family in Đề Tâu village converted 1.5 ha of low-efficiency swidden land to macadamia. After over five years of care, the garden began yielding an initial harvest of nearly 1 quintal of fresh fruit. Although yield remains modest, initial results strengthened family trust in the new crop.

According to Cấu, macadamia has wide planting spacing, making it completely suitable for intercropping with coffee. The two plants complement each other during care, optimizing fertilizer, labor, and land area to raise income value per unit area. Currently, Sáng Nhè commune holds 365 ha of macadamia and nearly 250 ha of coffee.

Phạm Ngọc Điện, Chairman of the Sáng Nhè commune People’s Committee, stated: “In 2026, the locality was assigned to plant 70 ha of new coffee intercropped with macadamia. Thanks to public consensus and active government involvement, the entire commune has newly planted approximately 350 ha of coffee, while macadamia acreage is being deployed on schedule.”

Beyond Búng Lao or Sáng Nhè, movements to expand coffee and macadamia acreage spread strongly in Chiềng Sinh commune, which currently holds around 320 ha of coffee and nearly 580 ha of macadamia. In 2026, the locality set a target to plant over 1,000 ha of new coffee and 400 ha of macadamia, aiming toward forming concentrated raw material zones to serve processing and export.

A distinct feature in current development lies in moving away from small-scale, fragmented production to step-by-step forming linkage chains with enterprises. Participating residents receive seed support, materials, technical guidance, and product consumption guarantees post-harvest. Stable market outlets allow residents to feel reassured investing in long-term crop care.

Đỗ Văn Sơn, Chairman of the Chiềng Sinh commune People’s Committee, noted: “Along with expanding acreage, the locality accelerates technical training, guides proper crop care procedures, and steps up corporate linkages to build sustainable value chains from production to consumption.”

Practical reality shows that developing coffee and macadamia goes beyond crop restructuring to drive fundamental shifts in public production mindsets. Transitioning from self-sufficient farming methods, many households now engage in commercial production, focusing on product quality, applying scientific and technical advances, and proactively joining linkage chains. This serves as the consistent orientation in Resolution No.11-NQ/TU of the Executive Board of the provincial Party Committee regarding agricultural restructuring toward concentrated, green, smart, and sustainable commercial production during the 2026-2030 period, with a vision toward 2035. Under resolution targets, by 2030, the entire province will shape approximately 70,000 ha of concentrated commercial production zones, including around 40,000 ha of macadamia and over 20,000 ha of coffee.

From barren hillsides, the green of coffee and macadamia is covering many areas across Điện Biên. With local authorities accompanying, enterprises joining linkages, and residents boldly innovating production mindsets, coffee and macadamia will serve as driving forces for agricultural economic development - contributing to raising incomes, reducing poverty sustainably, and building a modern commercial agricultural sector.