Quitting a well-paying job, a young man returned to his hometown to help dozens of farming households develop their economy.

Tons of raw materials were discarded because they did not meet requirements.

Graduated from the Information Technology Department, Mr. Hoang works in Thai Nguyen with a salary of over 10 million VND per month, a popular choice for many young people in his hometown when starting a business. Although his job is stable, he always has the intention of returning home, finding his own path and contributing to creating a sustainable livelihood for the local people.

At that time, local people were struggling with the model of converting from rice and vegetable cultivation to Solanum procumbens under the support program of Son Duong district. However, the method was fragmented, lacked linkage, the quality of the harvest was uneven, and the output was uncertain.

Realizing these shortcomings, he began to learn more about this plant, with the desire to improve production efficiency and increase the value of the crop for his hometown. In 2020, he decided to return to his hometown after saving 100 million VND and borrowing another 100 million from the Policy Bank through the support channel of the Youth Union.

He searched for information online and knocked on the doors of each purchasing source. At that time, Solanum procumbens in Hop Hoa commune was still unfamiliar to the market, and approaching customers was almost fruitless. Mr. Hoang traveled to many large processing facilities with many years of experience in provinces such as Hoa Binh, Hung Yen, Ninh Binh, Hanoi ... to learn. From those trips, he gradually understood what qualified raw materials were, how to test the input and the quality processing process, then returned to guide the people to do the same.

Quitting a well-paying job, a young man returned to his hometown to help dozens of farming households develop their economy. Photo 1

Mr. Hoang (middle) introduces the product of Solanum procumbens tea bags at the National Youth Startup Forum 2022 .

“I realized that to build a brand for a product, every step must be done properly, from planning the growing area to standardizing the preliminary processing and purchasing process,” Mr. Hoang shared. Thinking and doing, he established the Hop Hoa Agricultural and Forestry Production and Processing Service Cooperative, linking with more than 100 households in the area to grow and supply Solanum procumbens.

However, the first lesson was not cheap. The first batch of raw materials purchased was more than 15 tons, but when brought to processing facilities, up to 30% were rejected due to poor quality. “I suffered a heavy loss that season. But in return, I understood more clearly that product quality is a vital factor. I went back to each household, showed them which plants were rejected, why they were not qualified, and why we had to change the way we do things,” said Mr. Hoang.

Building a brand from local ingredients

After about 6 months of research, in March 2021, Mr. Hoang decided to borrow more capital from relatives and open a processing workshop on a 700m2 plot of land. The workshop includes a testing area, raw material screening area and a drying area, initially helping to control input quality well.

To sell at a good price, he requires people to plant in rows, clean the weeds, and create furrows for easy harvesting. The finished Solanum procumbens must be chopped properly, long or short depending on the type, and dried cleanly, without sand or impurities. The chopping machine and the row-splitting machine are lent by the cooperative, ensuring the correct processing procedure.

Quitting a well-paying job, a young man returned to his hometown to help dozens of farming households develop their economy. Photo 2

People of Hop Hoa commune harvest Solanum procumbens .

“Many households have to give up because their growing areas are small and cannot meet technical requirements. Although it is somewhat regretful, I believe that change is necessary if we want to go the long way,” Mr. Hoang shared.

Not stopping at the Solanum procumbens plant, Mr. Hoang continued to invest in more black tea varieties to help people have more plant varieties, both supporting new planting and creating more mixing materials for complete tea bag products. Thanks to the methodical direction, at the end of 2021, the Solanum procumbens tea product of Hop Hoa Cooperative was recognized as meeting the 4-star OCOP standard at the provincial level.

Up to now, Hop Hoa's Ca Gai Leo tea bags have been available in many supermarkets, stores, and e-commerce platforms nationwide. Each year, the Cooperative brings in nearly 5 billion VND in revenue, while also expanding its product lines such as Ca Gai Leo extract and Xa Den tea bags.

Currently, more than 60 households in the commune are confident in sticking with medicinal plants, thanks to stable output with a minimum purchase price of 28,000 VND/kg of dry plants. From the initial small model, the cooperative has now become a support for many families.

After last year’s storm No. 3 damaged nearly 10 hectares of Solanum procumbens and Xạ Đen, Mr. Hoang and his fellow villagers worked together to recover. “No one was left behind,” he said, when he decided to advance seeds to people in the form of gradual repayment, so that they would not miss out on the harvest.

According to Ms. Duong Thi Mao, Secretary of the Youth Union of Hop Hoa commune, Son Duong district, Tuyen Quang province, the Hop Hoa cooperative model, with Mr. Hoang as director, has been awarded many awards such as the Luong Dinh Cua award in 2023, the Certificate of Merit for Youth Entrepreneurship of the province in 2022... "Mr. Hoang is also an energetic young man, always accompanying local activities, especially in programs to support youth economic development", Ms. Mao shared.

Success

Source: https://tienphong.vn/bo-viec-luong-kha-chang-trai-ve-que-giup-hang-chuc-ho-nong-dan-phat-trien-kinh-te-post1755806.tpo