Price transparency in procurement contributes to protecting producers’ rights, building harmonious linkages between residents and enterprises, and steering the coffee industry toward increasingly sustainable development.

At present, coffee growers in Mường Ảng commune are entering the peak harvest season. After a year of investing effort in cultivation, farmers are now particularly attentive to procurement prices. To curb merchants from squeezing prices, Mường Ảng commune has maintained the daily public posting of coffee procurement prices, helping residents proactively reference, select the appropriate time, and choose the right location to sell their produce.

Mường Ảng commune currently has over 2,110ha of coffee, of which about 1,700ha are in the commercial yielding phase, with an estimated output reaching 16,000 tons of fresh coffee. Every day, Việt Bắc Coffee Import-Export Co., Ltd. sends a notice of the factory procurement price to the local administration. Based on this, the commune is responsible for signing and issuing a notice so that residents can stay informed and cross-check during transactions.

Lù Văn Cường, Deputy Head of the Economic Office of Mường Ảng commune, stated: “Procuring units send price notices; therefore, we publicly disseminate the information to the farmers to prevent merchants from squeezing prices. When purchasing, merchants must guarantee the minimum price as notified, providing residents with a reference basis during the fresh coffee sale process. Maintaining daily procurement price transparency is a practical solution that contributes to protecting coffee growers’ rights, consolidating farmers’ trust, and promoting the stable development of coffee production.”

Búng Lao currently has a total coffee acreage reaching 1,594ha; of which newly planted areas span 823ha, and commercial coffee areas reach 667ha. For this year’s coffee crop, local yields are estimated at 2.4 tons/ha, with parchment coffee output around 1,600 tons.

Across the commune, multiple procurement units are currently operating. Given the characteristic that products are consumed through numerous focal points, prices among procurement spots can differ, requiring coffee growers to proactively seek information before selling their produce. To minimize disadvantages in transactions, Búng Lao commune has coordinated with enterprises to update procurement prices daily, subsequently posting them publicly on local social media networks.

Phan Đức Anh, Head of the Economic Office of Búng Lao commune, stated: “The locality coordinates with Việt Bắc Coffee Import-Export Co., Ltd. to regularly update daily coffee procurement prices for residents’ reference. Because there are currently many collecting focal points across the area, residents have the right to choose the unit offering a higher price, suited to their transaction and product consumption conditions.”

The commune’s price transparency helps farmers grasp the general price level, preventing cases where merchants exploit residents’ lack of information to offer low prices. Furthermore, the local administration regularly works with procurement facilities, inspects the operations of pre-processing workshops, and monitors the coffee consumption situation.

Notably, in 2026, new coffee planting projects in the area were deployed under a chain linkage format, anchoring production to product off-take, thereby forging ties between growers and enterprises and progressively stabilizing outlets for agricultural produce.

Currently, Việt Bắc Coffee Import-Export Co., Ltd. has established sustainable coffee raw material zones across the communes of Mường Ảng, Búng Lao, Tuần Giáo, and Quài Tở. During coffee procurement, the company prioritizes the daily public posting of fresh cherry procurement prices, creating conditions for residents to grasp market price information. Price transparency contributes to curbing price-squeezing, ensuring the rights of coffee growers, while consolidating trust between the enterprise and the people.

Vương Bá Trung, Deputy Director of Việt Bắc Coffee Import-Export Co., Ltd., stated: “Although specific prices have been made public, to purchase coffee at the highest price as committed between the company and the Commune People’s Committees, we also require farmers to harvest coffee strictly according to standards. Within this, fresh coffee cherries must not have a floating or flat cherry ratio exceeding 5%, nor a green cherry ratio exceeding 5%. Specifically, in 10kg of fresh coffee cherries, the proportion of floating, flat, and green cherries must each not exceed 0.5kg. Unifying and publicizing these criteria between buyer and seller provides a basis for transparent pricing, ensuring a harmony of interests between the enterprise and the producers.”

To date, the total coffee acreage across the province exceeds 20,840ha; of which newly planted areas reach 12,450.65ha, with an estimated output of 1,050.55 tons. Alongside expanding raw material zones, the province is urging and supporting investors to accelerate the deployment of two deep coffee processing plant projects to elevate agricultural produce value, diversify products, and establish a closed linkage chain from production and procurement to processing and consumption. In particular, publicly and transparently posting procurement prices, coupled with expanding raw material zones and developing deep processing industries, is laying the foundation to elevate the value of coffee products.

Lường Văn Thành, from Na Luông village, Mường Ảng commune, shared: “Previously, entering the coffee harvest season, residents often had to ask for prices at multiple places, sometimes worrying about being squeezed by merchants. Now, the local administration coordinates with enterprises to publicly post daily fresh coffee procurement prices, helping farmers grasp information promptly and proactively select suitable times to sell. Consequently, coffee growers feel more secure, their rights are guaranteed, and they have added motivation to invest in tending their orchards.”

The companionship of administrations and enterprises brings price information closer to producers, contributing to ensuring rights, curbing inadequacies in procurement operations, and creating a fair and healthy transaction environment. Comprehensive, transparent price information contributes to guaranteeing benefits, building trust, and generating momentum for coffee growers to confidently invest, elevate quality, and expand raw material zones, heading toward the sustainable development of the coffee industry.