HÀ NỘI — Arabica coffee from Sơn La is expected to enter an international coffee auction in Hawaii, the United States, in November, as the northern mountainous province seeks to expand access to premium markets and strengthen the competitiveness of its agricultural products.

Nguyễn Thành Công, deputy chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee, disclosed the plan at a conference on science, technology, innovation and digital transformation to promote growth in agriculture on October 27.

The province also aims to list the product on a national-level coffee auction platform by the second quarter of 2027, Công said, adding that efforts have been hastened to accelerate digitisation of coffee growing areas and developing traceability data to meet increasingly stringent requirements in export markets.

The locality is also preparing for compliance with the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) and to facilitate access to other potential export markets.

Sơn La has identified 158,451 coffee-growing land plots covering approximately 65,000ha.

Cooperation between local authorities and businesses has helped speed up the development of plantation databases and the issuance of growing area codes.

Công said the province is standardising the information to ensure it is accurate, complete, clean and up-to-date, with the aim of improving data sharing and integration with national databases while completing a digital map of coffee-growing areas, clearly defining plot boundaries and improving the management of production zones.

Besides coffee, Sơn La has around 85,150ha of fruit orchards producing longan, mango, dragon fruit, avocado and strawberries. The province has also successfully cultivated kiwi fruit in Mộc Châu.

Alongside digitalisation, Sơn La is prioritising processing, storage and logistics to reduce post-harvest losses and increase the value of agricultural products, Công said.

Without adequate storage and transportation, agricultural products could lose as much as 65 per cent of their value, he added.

The province has called on scientists and central government agencies to support research and technology transfers in post-harvest preservation, as well as improvements to logistics throughout the supply chain.

Provincial authorities also called for stronger data-sharing links between businesses and government agencies, stressing that information on production areas must be accurate, comprehensive, clearly mapped and accessible for common use.

Sơn La aims to ensure that agricultural databases serve the practical needs of producers, regulators and markets while supporting greener and more sustainable farming. — VNS