Many plum growers in Son La are livestreaming to introduce their products right from their orchards.

Currently, the orientation towards establishing and developing fruit-growing areas is becoming an important pillar in the province's sustainable agricultural development strategy.

As early as 2015, the Provincial Party Standing Committee identified fruit tree cultivation on sloping land as a breakthrough in agricultural and forestry economics, simultaneously increasing production value and creating livelihoods for farmers, gradually reducing the area of ​​low-efficiency food crop cultivation.

The thematic resolutions in Son La, ranging from supporting cooperatives and renovating unproductive orchards to developing agricultural processing industries, all adhere to this orientation. To date, the province has reviewed, registered, converted, and replanted over 85,000 hectares of sloping land previously used for cultivating food crops and low-efficiency industrial crops, representing a 219% increase in area and a 332% increase in production compared to 2016. Son La now has 59 OCOP (One Commune One Product) products that are produced, processed from fruit, and exported abroad.

The province has 560 agricultural processing plants and facilities, including 17 factories… Although many positive results have been achieved, the province's fruit-growing areas still face numerous difficulties, such as inconsistent raw material quality, fragmented production, and weak supply chain linkages. The percentage of agricultural products processed remains low, at less than 10%, with the majority still consumed fresh and dependent on traders.

Furthermore, preservation and deep processing technologies are inadequate; logistics infrastructure, cold storage, and transportation connections remain limited. The application of science and technology and mechanization in cultivation and harvesting is still not widespread, leading to unstable productivity and product quality. The "bumper harvest, falling prices" phenomenon still occurs with some fruits due to inadequate market forecasting and a lack of coordinated planning for raw material areas…

Faced with these challenges, Son La is focusing on implementing many strategic solutions to develop fruit-growing areas in a concentrated, sustainable manner, applying high technology, linking with processing industries and consumer markets; and is concentrating on planning specialized cultivation areas linked with processing industries.

Accordingly, by the end of 2025, 10 high-tech fruit-growing zones will be established, including those growing mangoes, longan, plums, custard apples, and citrus fruits. These zones will receive infrastructure investment and will uniformly apply VietGAP and GlobalGAP standards, moving towards organic farming and creating a stable supply of raw materials for processing plants. Mr. Vu Tien Dinh, Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Environment, said: The province is continuing to review the planning of industrial zones and clusters in Mai Son, Van Ho, and other communes, prioritizing the allocation of land for projects processing, preserving, and packaging agricultural products, gradually reducing the situation of "seasonal raw material surplus".

Son La province is focusing on developing off-season fruit varieties such as mangoes, longan, oranges, plums, and pineapples to ensure year-round supply and avoid oversupply during peak seasons. The goal is to reach 8,000 hectares of off-season fruit trees by the end of 2025, with a production of approximately 85,000 tons. The province is also strongly shifting from a "supply chain" model to a "value chain" model; in which farmer-enterprise linkages are considered the core. Cooperatives and businesses play an intermediary role in organizing production under contract, connecting with domestic and international distribution systems.

The province aims to manage the production of approximately 15,000 hectares of fruit trees according to planting area codes by the end of 2025, meeting the requirements for export to demanding markets such as the US, EU, Australia, Japan, and China. Simultaneously, it will continue to build and protect brands and geographical indications for specialty fruits such as Song Ma longan, Yen Chau mango, Moc Chau plum, and Phu Yen orange; focus on promoting processing and logistics industries; develop ecological and organic agricultural models combined with tourism; train human resources; and enhance science and technology.

With a vision extending to 2030, Son La aims to develop sustainable, large-scale fruit-growing areas with a production volume of millions of tons, becoming a leading center for processing and exporting fruits and vegetables nationwide. Key products such as mangoes, longan, plums, passion fruit, pineapples, and citrus fruits will continue to receive comprehensive investment from production to processing and consumption. Accordingly, the province clearly defines its commitment to "sustainable development, harmonizing economic interests with environmental protection, improving people's lives, contributing to the construction of new rural areas, and ensuring border security."