Phu Tho (VNA) – The “dinh” tea premium product of the Hoai Trung Tea Co. Ltd, based in Chi Tien commune of Thanh Ba district, the northern midland province of Phu Tho, has been rated five stars at the national level under the One𓆉 Commune, One Product (OCOP) programme.

The Hoai Trung “dinh” tea premium product is the combination of three special varieties planted on the hills of Thanh Ba district and undergoing a special processing technique to create a unique taste. Bui Thi Mao, Director of the Hoai Trung Tea Co. Ltd, said one kilogramme of dried “dinh” tea needs at least seven - eight kilogrammes of fresh buds to be made. After being picked, tea buds must be left to dry naturally for four - five hours before they are put into rubbing and drying machines for processing. Processed tea is evenly curled and as small as nails, called “dinh” in Vietnamese, hence its name “dinh” tea. The product is made by using high Japanese technology and packaged into teabags, which is highly convenient for consumers, she noted, adding that the drink is as yellow as young glutinous rice flakes and releases a comfortable and elegant flavour with a lightly acrid and sweet taste left after consumed. The recognition of the Hoai Trung “dinh” tea product as a national five-star OCOP product is expected to help the organic tea sector of Thanh Ba district and Phu Tho province as a whole to reach a new level, thereby generating a higher economic value and improving people’s material and spiritual lives. Mao noted that to ensure food safety and origin traceability, her company has cooperated with local tea farming households in all steps, from caring for plants, preventing pests and diseases, picking buds, to processing and producing tea. All the steps are monitored by technicians. The firm now has 100ha of tea grown in partnership with local farmers. So far, it has launched several premium tea products such as premium teabag, premium jasmine tea, and special green tea, the entrepreneur went on, adding that they have met quality and food safety standards and won consumers’ preference. In 2021, the Hoai Trung “dinh” tea premium product was recognised as a four-star OCOP product by the Phu Tho provincial People’s Committee. Last September, the province’s council for assessing and rating OCOP products gave it a five-star rating with a score of 92.3 points. Recently, the tea was recognised as a national five-star OCOP product by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Aside from producing green tea, the company has also exported about 1,000 tonnes of black tea to China and Middle Eastern countries each year. Since 2022, it has shipped over 1,300 tonnes of black tea abroad, earning nearly 26 billion VND (1.1 million USD) in revenue. In addition to the Hoai Trung “dinh” tea premium product, Phu Tho province is also home to 142 other products and groups of products recognised under the OCOP programme, comprising 47 with four stars and 95 others with three stars. In its OCOP programme until 2025, Phu Tho plans to standardise and develop 228 key, speciality, and typical products rated at least three stars, including 11 national five-star products, 75 with four stars, and 142 with three stars. The OCOP programme, initiated by the agriculture ministry in 2008, is modeled after Japan’s “One Village, One Product” programme and Thailand’s “One Tambon, One Product”. It is an economic development programme for rural areas and also to help implement the national target programme on new-style rural area building. OCOP products are made basing on the combination of local resources, traditional culture, and advanced technology. The programme looks to provide farmers with a chance to come together to form cooperatives, enabling them to create goods with higher quality and better design and packaging that meet higher standards and market demand./.