A garden of Achyranthes bidentata in Suoi Sau village, Song Khua commune.

From early morning, the area in Suoi Sau village where the roots of Panax notoginseng and Rehmannia glutinosa are grown was bustling with the laughter and chatter of villagers participating in the Medicinal Herb Harvest Festival. Mrs. Dinh Thi Chan, from Suoi Sau village, and other women in the village were busy hoeing, picking, and bagging the roots of Panax notoginseng. While working, Mrs. Chan said: "Before, my family only grew corn and cassava, working year-round but not making much profit. Now, growing medicinal herbs is harder, but we have technical guidance and guaranteed sales. Today, the Van Ho Agricultural and Medicinal Herb Cooperative is buying our produce for 10,000 VND/kg, and we're all very happy."

Van Ho Herbal Agricultural Cooperative guides farmers on how to select Southern Panax notoginseng roots for propagation and planting in the next season.

Not far away, sacks of wild ginger roots from Ms. Dinh Thi Loan's family were being carefully weighed and recorded by the cooperative's purchasing officers. At a selling price of 20,000 VND/kg, Ms. Loan couldn't hide her joy: "Initially, we were worried because we weren't familiar with the techniques and wondered if we could sell our produce. But with the project's support in providing seeds and fertilizers, and the guidance from the enterprise and cooperative from planting to harvesting, and now with the cooperative buying our produce, we feel much more at ease knowing we can do it and have a stable income."

People in Suoi Sau village, Song Khua commune, harvest southern ginseng..

Song Khua and To Mua were originally purely agricultural communes, mainly growing corn and cassava. Production was heavily dependent on the weather, and income was unstable depending on market prices. Initially, VietRAP Son La Medicinal Herbs Joint Stock Company implemented a pilot project to cultivate medicinal herbs with 7 types of plants on a scale of 5 hectares. Through the implementation process, it was found that the ecological conditions in the two communes were very suitable: Song Khua was suitable for purple cardamom, Achyranthes bidentata, Panax notoginseng, and Leonurus artemisia; To Mua was suitable for Salvia miltiorrhiza, Codonopsis pilosula, Angelica sinensis, and Vietnamese ginseng.

In January 2025, the medicinal plant development project officially launched with the support of the GREAT Project, aiming to support approximately 150 households in Song Khua and To Mua communes during the 2025-2027 period, establishing a 59-hectare medicinal plant cultivation area according to international GACP-WHO standards. After one year of implementation, the cultivation area has expanded by 37.7 hectares, gradually forming a concentrated cultivation area linked to a value chain.

Currently, 139 households in Song Khua commune are participating in medicinal herb cultivation, concentrated in the villages of Suoi Sau and Long Khua, covering a total area of ​​approximately 5 hectares. The cultivated medicinal herbs include: Panax notoginseng, Achyranthes bidentata, Angelica sinensis, Platycodon grandiflorus, and Rhus chinensis; alongside experimental crops such as Salvia miltiorrhiza, Panax notoginseng, and Panax ginseng. Initial results are very promising, with Angelica sinensis yielding approximately 13 tons of fresh herb per hectare, Platycodon grandiflorus 12 tons per hectare, and Salvia miltiorrhiza approximately 13 tons per hectare. Long-term crops like Rhus chinensis, Panax notoginseng, and Vietnamese ginseng are growing well, promising high economic value in the coming years.

VietRAP Son La Medicinal Herbs Joint Stock Company has connected with Van Ho Agricultural and Medicinal Herbs Cooperative and other cooperatives in Song Khua, forming a medicinal herb cultivation area linked with local households. In addition to purchasing products, the cooperatives also directly provide technical guidance, supervise cultivation processes according to GACP-WHO standards, support initial processing, and connect with processing businesses. The company also collaborated with the Song Khua Commune People's Committee to organize a workshop introducing the medicinal herb project, evaluating the initial results of the project, and organizing a medicinal herb harvest festival so that local people could directly learn about the significance and benefits of participating in the project.

The people take care of the medicinal herb garden.

Mr. Do Trung Kien, Director of Van Ho Herbal Agricultural Cooperative, shared: The cooperative was established in 2023 and currently has 17 members, cultivating 8 types of medicinal herbs: Leonurus japonicus, Panax notoginseng, Rehmannia glutinosa, Codonopsis pilosula, Salvia miltiorrhiza, Achyranthes bidentata, Amomum xanthioides… Besides purchasing, today's festival is also a step towards completing the production-consumption linkage chain.

According to Mr. Kien, the biggest concern for people growing medicinal herbs is the market for their produce. Therefore, right from the beginning of the season, the cooperative signed agreements with businesses, agreeing on technical procedures, purchasing standards, and prices. By following the correct procedures and ensuring quality, the products produced will certainly be sold.

The households take care of their medicinal herb gardens.

The people cultivate the land for growing medicinal herbs.

Mr. Sa Van Duc, an officer at the GREAT Project Office in Son La, said: "The project aims to enhance the economic empowerment of women, especially ethnic minority women. In this medicinal plant chain, we aim to involve approximately 150 women, 80% of whom are ethnic minority women, providing support in terms of seeds, fertilizers, techniques, and market connections."

To build a sustainable and inclusive medicinal plant value chain, the GREAT Project will accompany and support capacity building through the development of 59 hectares of medicinal plant cultivation areas meeting GACP-WHO standards, of which 35 hectares have achieved international GACP-WHO certification; 2 cooperatives will have their management and operational capabilities improved; 5 production linkage groups will be established and operate effectively; and successful models will be documented and shared for replication and transformation of the medicinal plant industry in Son La.

VietRAP Son La Medicinal Herbs Joint Stock Company is a partner throughout the project. According to Ms. Vu Thi Van Phuong, Chairwoman of the Board of Directors of the company, since 2022, the enterprise has surveyed land and water conditions in Song Khua and To Mua, organized meetings with local people, and selected planting areas. In the period 2025-2027, the company will develop 59 hectares of planting area and 1 hectare of seed garden. In 2025, the company has already implemented nearly 30 hectares. According to the plan, in the period 2026-2027, VietRAP Son La will develop 100 hectares of Amomum xanthioides, 30 hectares of Rehmannia glutinosa, and 20 hectares of Panax notoginseng, aiming to build a high-quality medicinal herb area with traceable origins, meeting the requirements for deep processing.

People are planting a new crop of bellflower.

The Medicinal Herb Harvest Festival is a new approach that contributes to changing the production mindset of the people from fragmented and spontaneous to chain-based production, responding to market signals. Not stopping at purchasing fresh raw materials, cooperatives are developing plans for preliminary processing, preservation, and moving towards deep processing to increase the added value of the products. Once the chain is operating stably, the Medicinal Herb Harvest Festival will become an annual event, creating a sustainable economic development direction from medicinal plants for farmers in Song Khua and To Mua communes.

Minh Thu