"Leaving the city to return to the countryside": The choice of young people who dare to think and dare to do

"Leaving the city to return to the countryside" - the "reverse migration" of young people is no longer a temporary trend, but has become a serious choice of many young people.

The 9X generation young man Nguyen Tuan Dung (Ea Kiet commune, Cu M'gar district) is a living proof. He used to be a mechanical engineer with an attractive salary at a Japanese company in Ho Chi Minh City. During the two years the company sent him to study in Japan, he had the opportunity to experience and learn about the advanced agriculture of the land of cherry blossoms. That was also the time when he "planted" in his heart a strong passion for clean, sustainable agriculture and the desire to do something to contribute to the development of his homeland, bringing Vietnamese coffee to the world.

Mr. Nguyen Tuan Dung introduces coffee products to visitors at the 2025 Coffee and OCOP Products Exhibition Fair.

In 2018, Mr. Dung decided to "leave the city and return to the countryside", starting his entrepreneurial journey with "iForest Sustainable Farm". In 2021, together with a close friend, he officially established a farm on 6 hectares of family land, following the multi-layered forest garden ecological model. Not following the traditional path, Dung boldly applied organic farming methods and high technology to production. Thanks to that, the quality of the farm's coffee has been increasingly improved, meeting the standards of Vietnamese specialty coffee, and has been well received by the market.

Or like the young man born in the 90s, Doan Tuan Nhat - founder of the Ant Bee brand, chose the path of developing specialty coffee. Born and raised in the key coffee production area of ​​Dak Lak - Krong Nang district, when he grew up, like many other young people, Nhat left the countryside to start a business in Ho Chi Minh City. However, after the battery coffee incident in Dak Nong province (2018), Nhat suddenly felt sorry for the farmers who produce coffee beans, including his parents and relatives who could not drink decent cups of coffee. That was also the motivation that urged him to quit his job as an electrical engineer, return to his hometown to find a teacher and switch to processing specialty coffee in 2019.

So the young man was passionate about the aroma of coffee, choosing a farm in Lam Dong as his starting point, because according to Nhat, to have specialty coffee, one must have the best raw materials and a suitable climate. Dak Lak is the champion of Robusta, but the most attractive Arabica must be Cau Dat (Lam Dong). To ensure quality, he closely monitors the input stage in the raw material areas (about 13 hectares) located in the two provinces of Dak Lak and Lam Dong. Here, coffee is cared for according to safe processes, without using herbicides, increasing organic fertilizers and only harvesting ripe fruits. With knowledge and passion, Nhat has built a coffee brand with its own unique mark, highly appreciated by experts and consumers.

Young people who "leave the city to return to the countryside" not only bring change to their own lives, but also contribute to changing the face of the countryside. They are not afraid to invest in technology, apply modern farming methods. At the same time, they focus on building brands, promoting products on online channels, and accessing domestic and foreign markets. They not only sell products, but also "sell" stories, values, and experiences.

In the early days of farming, Mr. Nguyen Tuan Dung and his colleagues had to gradually overcome many difficulties, from converting traditional farming methods to organic, to finding outlets for raw products. However, with determination and creativity, Mr. Dung's group invested in machinery, researched product processing and gradually affirmed its position in the market. To date, the group's products have been present in 21 stores in 7 provinces and cities across the country; there are 4 coffee products that have achieved 3-star OCOP. Notably, his farm has a coffee sample that has been certified as a Vietnamese Specialty Coffee in 2023.

Visitors learn about Ant Bee's specialty coffee capsule product - Antbeepresso at the 2025 Coffee and OCOP Products Exhibition.

Also embarking on the challenging "narrow path" of specialty coffee, Mr. Doan Tuan Nhat shared that in 2020 he had a product certified as Vietnamese Specialty Coffee. However, at that time, the domestic specialty coffee segment was still very new, so no one bought the product (green beans). Facing difficulties, the idea of ​​starting a business with a coffee take away cart with the coffee beans he made himself came to mind. Fortunately, his coffee has won over many customers. From a cart, he has now opened a chain of coffee shops to meet the number of customers coming to the Ant Bee brand.

In 2022, Ant Bee Tea and Coffee Company Limited was established. Awards from domestic and international specialty coffee competitions have helped Ant Bee build its reputation and attract customers. Currently, Ant Bee not only supplies specialty green coffee beans to roasters, but also roasts and supplies ground coffee and processed coffee beans to consumers. Tea from Arabica coffee husks is also a popular product of this brand. In particular, Ant Bee's specialty coffee capsule product - Antbeepresso, a convenient coffee product line that is available for the first time in the domestic market and researched and produced by himself, has made a strong impression and attracted visitors at the 9th Buon Ma Thuot Coffee Festival in 2025.

It can be seen that the "return home" journey of Nguyen Tuan Dung and Doan Tuan Nhat, as well as many other young people, is a testament to the aspiration of young people who dare to think and dare to do, contributing to awakening the potential of Vietnamese coffee and building a modern, sustainable agriculture. However, the path of "leaving the city to return to the countryside" is not paved with roses. Young people face many challenges, from investment capital, professional knowledge to climate change and market risks. However, with determination, creativity and support from the Government, organizations, businesses, along with the development of technology, markets... are creating great opportunities for young people to start a business in the agricultural sector.

Minh Thuan

Source: https://baodaklak.vn/kinh-te/202503/bo-pho-ve-vuon-lua-chon-cua-nguoi-tre-dam-nghi-dam-lam-c5c1533/