Visiting the coffee plantation of Lường Văn Bình in Bình Minh village, one readily senses the family’s joy as clusters of ripe red cherries enter harvest. Across more than 2ha, Bình expects to gather approximately 20 tons of fresh cherries this year. Bình shared that having every season yield as well as this year would be ideal. Although fresh cherry prices do not match last year’s level, they remain relatively stable. In past periods, prices dropped to merely VND 8,000 to VND 10,000 per kg, so prevailing price levels provide sustained motivation to tend and invest in the orchards.

Beyond Bình’s family, numerous coffee-growing households in Mường Ảng are entering the harvest season with an upbeat mindset. In Na Luông village, Nguyễn Văn Du cultivates over 7ha of coffee. Although many trees are aging, proper technical maintenance has kept the plantation thriving, yielding roughly 100 tons of fresh cherries annually. After deducting operational costs, his family clears over VND 700 million. Du shared that prolonged periods of volatile prices coupled with high tending expenses once dampened villagers’ enthusiasm for investment, but relatively solid prices sustained in recent years provide farmers with extra motivation to nurture their orchards, safeguarding both yield and quality.

To those who have been attached to coffee cultivation for decades, seasonal price fluctuations have become familiar. At times when prices plunged to VND 8,000 to VND 10,000 per kg, growers had to weigh every orchard expenditure carefully. Consequently, the current price range of VND 16,000 to VND 17,000 per kg for fresh cherries, while below last year’s level, provides peace of mind as households embark on harvesting.

Lò Văn Thành, Head of Na Luông village, Mường Ảng commune, noted that during years of depressed coffee prices, residents occasionally scaled back investment in their plots. With prices now maintaining comparative stability, villagers find renewed momentum to tend, fertilize, weed, prune branches, and sustain yields. Encouragingly, many households have become more mindful of cherry quality, refraining from picking unripe green cherries and thereby elevating product quality right from the primary harvest stage.

In Mường Ảng commune, coffee trees took root decades ago, eventually establishing a raw material zone spanning more than 2,110ha. Within this area, productive commercial orchards account for approximately 1,813ha. Average annual output reaches 14,000 to 16,000 tons of fresh cherries, equivalent to 3,500 to 3,900 tons of green coffee beans. In 2025 alone, revenue generated from coffee across Mường Ảng commune stood at approximately VND 450 billion.

Stable coffee prices not only reassure farming households entering the harvest season, but local procurement and processing facilities in Mường Ảng commune also harbor elevated expectations regarding product consumption.

Bùi Thị Việt Hà, owner of the Hà Chung coffee processing facility, observed that alongside positive signals across the global coffee market, Mường Ảng coffee is increasingly asserting its quality and brand reputation. In recent years, through trade promotion activities, fairs, exhibitions, and coffee festivals, Mường Ảng Arabica has gained recognition among domestic consumers, while several international travelers have explored, tasted, and expressed interest in the product. Hà noted that this provides positive momentum for farmers to retain orchards and for processing facilities to invest in quality enhancements, diversify products, and deliver the distinct aroma of Mường Ảng coffee to a wider consumer base.

The joy of Mường Ảng coffee growers was further multiplied when the Mường Ảng Coffee product was granted a Geographical Indication certificate in late 2025. This milestone confirms origin and quality, laying the groundwork for systematic brand building. Trần Minh Giáp, Vice Chairman of the People’s Committee of Mường Ảng commune, noted that with over 2,110ha of existing coffee, the locality affirms this remains a key crop linked to the livelihoods of many households. Moving forward, however, development must extend beyond maintaining acreage to improving raw material quality, raising processing proportions, and establishing sustainable production linkages.

According to Trần Minh Giáp, the commune has coordinated and offered optimal conditions within its authority to welcome corporate investments into the coffee sector, while focusing on quality raw material zones and encouraging residents to adhere to standard tending protocols to enhance produce quality. Notably, the commune anticipates that the forthcoming deep-processing plant project of the Detech Coffee Joint Stock Company in Na Luông village will generate additional impetus to elevate bean value directly within the production locality.

Following every harvest season, what growers anticipate most is stable market off-take to remain committed to coffee farming. Yet the true value of Mường Ảng coffee extends beyond fresh cherry prices. As quality rises, brand awareness spreads, and deep processing is pursued, the labor of local farmers will gain greater avenues to crystallize into enduring value upon the very land that has nurtured coffee plants across the years.