Not simply an agricultural product, pineapple in Son La is playing a pivotal role in developing sustainable livelihoods, especially for ethnic minorities in remote areas of Son La province.

In the general context of the whole country implementing the Party's policies and guidelines on restructuring agriculture, rural development, rural economy associated with building new rural areas in the direction of ecological agriculture; changing awareness and approach to commodity agricultural production, transforming from agricultural production thinking to agricultural economic thinking to exploit and promote the advantages of tropical agriculture, developing large-scale concentrated commodity agriculture, Son La province has proactively organized the implementation of the above policy through intellectual property development programs in the province in stages from 2021 to 2030 to exploit agricultural advantages associated with building local specialty brands.

Pineapple trees in Son La are playing a pivotal role in sustainable livelihood development, especially for ethnic minorities in remote areas. Source: Son La Provincial Information Center.

Among the many agricultural products applied under this program, Son La fresh pineapple products have emerged as a typical product that brings clear economic benefits and clearly demonstrates the modern thinking of agricultural production and consumption of Son La leaders and people. The brand "Son La Pineapple" is protected and developed under the form of a Certified Trademark, which is also evidence and a concrete result of the positive changes in economic, social and environmental aspects resulting from this transformation.

Located in the midland and mountainous region of the North, Son La possesses ideal ecological conditions for growing pineapples, with fertile soil, a temperate climate and a large day-night temperature range suitable for sun-loving crops such as pineapples. Taking advantage of this, Son La province has planned and expanded specialized areas in districts such as Quynh Nhai, Muong La, Song Ma, etc.

In addition to the native MD2 pineapple variety, Son La province has also introduced a number of pineapple varieties with high yield, high nutritional value, suitable for processing for export such as Queen pineapple, Cayenne pineapple - pineapple varieties favored by the international market for their high sweetness, mild aroma and eye-catching appearance.

Thanks to that, concentrated production areas have been formed, creating a closed value chain from cultivation, harvesting to preservation and consumption, gradually increasing product value.

According to the General Statistics Office of Son La province, by 2024, the entire Son La province has formed a pineapple growing area with a total area of ​​442 hectares, with an estimated harvest output of about 3,397 tons.

This is an impressive figure, reflecting the strong participation of local authorities and the shift in production thinking from spontaneous to large-scale production in the direction of goods forming specialized concentrated production areas.

Economic value linked to sustainable livelihoods

Not simply an agricultural product, pineapple in Son La is playing a pivotal role in sustainable livelihood development, especially for ethnic minorities in remote areas of Son La province. With high adaptability, low investment costs and stable economic efficiency, pineapple has become an ideal alternative to inefficient crops such as cassava and corn. Thousands of households in Son La province have gradually converted and replaced inefficient corn and cassava areas with pineapple cultivation according to the chain.

It is estimated that each hectare of pineapple can yield 25-30 tons, with an average selling price of 5,000-10,000 VND/kg; after deducting costs, the profit is 30-50 million VND/ha. Households that invest well, take care of the plants properly, and follow technical procedures have clear productivity and economic efficiency.

The "3-house" linkage model (farmers - enterprises - state) has been implemented synchronously, helping to ensure stable output through purchasing contracts, while improving production capacity according to safety standards. Many households have escaped poverty and gradually become rich from pineapple trees.

Developing pineapple is not only about developing agriculture, but also contributing to hunger eradication, poverty reduction, job creation and stabilizing the lives of thousands of households in remote areas of Son La province. This is a clear demonstration of the viewpoint of economic development associated with social security and sustainable development.

Thousands of households in Son La province have gradually converted and replaced ineffective corn and cassava areas with pineapple cultivation according to the chain. Source: Son La Province Information Center

Since 2021, the pineapple growing area in Son La has increased rapidly thanks to the provincial People's Committee's policy of changing the crop structure, encouraging people to replace ineffective crops with valuable fruit trees. Son La province has issued many practical support policies such as Resolution No. 50/2022/NQ-HDND of Son La province on subsidizing seeds, input materials, supporting mulch films, technical guidance, and especially promoting chain linkage.

Thanks to that, in addition to direct consumption to consumers in and outside the province, Son La pineapple is also consumed through contracts with production and processing enterprises to diversify pineapple products to serve consumption in the domestic market as well as the export market.

On November 27, 2024, the product "Son La Pineapple" was officially granted the Certificate of Registration of Certification Mark No. 521227 under Decision No. 155613/QD-SHTT of the Department of Intellectual Property. This is not only an important legal milestone, but also a testament to the persistent efforts of the government and people in the journey of building a reputable agricultural product brand.

With the protection of the Certification Mark, products are not only strictly controlled in terms of origin and quality in compliance with safe production processes, but also have more opportunities to increase value, expand markets, and promote the development of sustainable ecological agriculture.

In parallel, trade promotion activities - from agricultural fairs, connecting supply and demand, to e-commerce platforms - are also strongly implemented, helping Son La Pineapple gradually affirm its brand in the domestic market and expectations for the export market in the future.