These days, at daybreak, Vàng A Ly of Pu Lau hamlet is already out in the fields tending newly planted pineapple plots and harvesting off-season ripe fruit. Each hectare accommodates around 25,000 plants, yielding an average of 12-16 tons per hectare, he said. With prices ranging from VND 12,000 to VND 14,000 per kilogram, growers can net over VND 100 million per hectare after expenses.

Cultivated using natural methods, Pu Lau pineapples ripen in staggered batches. Peak harvest runs from late June through August. After each harvest, the plants produce offshoots that farmers can separate and replant, ensuring a self-sufficient seed supply and lowering input costs.

“We don’t use pesticides during cultivation, ensuring food safety for consumers. That’s also what builds the reputation of Pu Lau honey pineapple,” Ly said.

Recognizing strong market demand, Pu Lau residents have proactively learned about seed selection and shifted underperforming rice and corn fields to pineapple. All 117 households in the hamlet grow the crop, from a few hundred square meters to several hectares. Ly’s family cultivates 5 hectares, while Vàng A Sao grows 4.5 hectares.

According to Pu Lau headman Vàng A Nếnh, pineapple farming initially developed spontaneously. With guidance and planning from local authorities, acreage has steadily expanded. Pu Lau now has around 160 hectares, the largest in the commune, and has become a bright spot in poverty reduction. Only one of its 117 households remains classified as poor.

Beyond Pu Lau, hamlets such as Ban, Huổi Cảnh, Pá Chả, C5 and Na Khoang are also converting less productive upland fields to pineapple, tapping into the crop’s economic potential.

For the 2025-2030 term, the Mường Nhà Party Committee has identified honey pineapple as a flagship crop, placing it at the center of efforts to boost incomes and promote sustainable agriculture. The commune targets more than 500 hectares by 2030, tied to developing large scale raw material zones and strengthening linkages among farmers, cooperatives and businesses.

To implement the resolution, in 2025, the commune attracted Pu Lau Honey Pineapple Cooperative to invest in a 300-hectare pineapple production chain in Ban hamlet. Farmers are converting sloping land and applying improved cultivation techniques to enhance yield and fruit quality.

By the end of 2025, total pineapple acreage in the commune reached 256.5 hectares, with output estimated at 5,200 tons. Mường Nhà has become one of the province’s largest pineapple producing areas, helping build a competitive agricultural value chain.

In 2026, the commune aims to expand pineapple cultivation to more than 300 hectares, linked to stable and sustainable market outlets. To achieve this, Mường Nhà is stepping up efforts to attract capable enterprises to invest at scale, fully tapping land potential and developing a concentrated pineapple production zone.

Across the hills of Mường Nhà, farmers are busily planting new crops, replacing once less productive upland plots. Neatly aligned rows of pineapple are gradually covering the slopes, raising hopes for a flagship crop that can deliver sustainable incomes for local residents.