DAK LAK, Vietnam – Coffee growers in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak have applied internationally-recognised programmes on sustainable coffee production to raise their incomes, according to the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.
More than 40,500 coffee farming households in Dak Lak have produced coffee in line with programmes such as UTZ certificates, Common Code for Coffee Community (4C) and Rainforest Alliance Certified Coffee (RFA).
They have produced 226,000 tonnes of coffee beans on a combined area of 65,000 hectares each year, accounting for over 50 percent of the annual output.
All ten units granted with the Geographical Indication of Buon Ma Thuot coffee have also joined certified coffee production programmes.
In Cu M’gar district, the main coffee growing locality in Dak Lak, almost 10,000 coffee farming households have taken part in certified coffee production programmes with 15,000 hectares, making up 45 percent of the district’s total coffee area.
These households have been provided with techniques in growing, caring, watering, fertilizing, harvesting, processing and preservation. They have been also instructed on how to reduce production costs and use fertilizers in order to minimize impacts on the environment.
Dak Lak province has led the nation in terms of both coffee area and output with more than 203,000 hectares and an annual output of at least 450,000 tonnes.
