Create space for OCOP products

OCOP products participate in shopping stimulus program

Having a brand is still difficult to find a market

Thien Nhien Viet Import-Export Company Limited has a list of products such as pennywort powder, perilla powder, fish mint powder, moringa powder... that have been certified as OCOP products. However, Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Huong, co-founder and Deputy Director of the company, shared that it is difficult to get products meeting OCOP criteria, but it is even more difficult to bring these products to the market. "Before 2024, the company produced an average of more than 10 tons of vegetable powder (gotu kola, perilla) per month, creating more than 200,000 products to serve the needs of domestic and foreign consumers. In the first months of 2025, due to the slowing world market demand and the decline in domestic consumption... business became more difficult," said Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Huong.

To attract consumers to buy products, the criteria of novelty and local character must be put first. To do so, businesses must invest in new technology to develop new products. However, to have a moderate technological chain, it will require at least 5 billion VND - this is a large amount of capital for start-ups like Thien Nhien Viet. In addition, to bring products to consumers, it is necessary to have a marketing strategy (advertising, trade promotion, etc.), but this cost is not small. "For agricultural enterprises like us, we need more thorough policies, less lengthy and more practical," Ms. Huong expressed. Similarly, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Son, Sales Director of Tan Nhien Company Limited, said that after 6 years of entering the market, Tan Nhien's OCOP-certified rice paper products, although having a certain position in the market, are not easy to expand their scale and reach more customers.

In fact, the difficulty in accessing the market is a problem for many businesses with OCOP products, especially for start-ups and small-scale companies in the context of the unpredictable developments of the world market as it is today. “We are still in the start-up phase, with limited capital. If we have to invest in production lines, develop products and carry out marketing at the same time, it will not be enough. Meanwhile, in order for products to reach consumers, in addition to quality and novelty, we need a promotional strategy with a large budget and do it regularly and continuously to be effective,” said Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Son.

Support consumer outreach

Understanding the difficulties of these enterprises, many large distribution systems in Ho Chi Minh City have been carrying out many support activities such as facilitating the delivery of goods to shelves, organizing large-scale stimulus campaigns, etc. Ho Chi Minh City Union of Trading Cooperatives (Saigon Co.op) is one of the typical units.

According to records, many enterprises with OCOP products are being given priority for display space on the shelves of this supermarket system. For example, in June 2023, Tan Nhien Company Limited - through the connection of the Department of Industry and Trade of Tay Ninh province - successfully brought its products to the shelves of Saigon Co.op supermarkets. Sharing with SGGP reporters, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Son said that up to now, Tan Nhien rice paper products have expanded their market share to many localities where Co.opmart and Co.op Food supermarkets are located. In particular, the biggest gain that enterprises have seen is that, through Saigon Co.op supermarkets, the products are known to more consumers. Thanks to that, Tan Nhien's revenue has increased significantly compared to before.

Similarly, with Thien Nhien Viet, Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Huong said that all of the company's OCOP-standard products are available on Saigon Co.op shelves and are participating in general promotional programs that the supermarket carries out. This also greatly supports the business in the context of the current difficult output in the international market.

According to Mr. Vo Tran Ngoc, Sales Director of Saigon Co.op, Saigon Co.op is a pioneer in making efforts to deploy and realize the OCOP product program for the period 2021-2025 approved by the Government with a focus on developing the rural economy in the direction of promoting internal strength and increasing value, contributing to the development of the rural economy and increasing income for farmers.

Mr. Vo Tran Ngoc said that Saigon Co.op with a nationwide network of points of sale is selling more than 500 OCOP products from cooperatives nationwide such as Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai, Tay Ninh, Dak Nong, Kien Giang, Hanoi, Thai Nguyen... Notably, OCOP products sold at Saigon Co.op supermarket systems are diverse, regionally specific, with geographical indications such as Phu Quoc fish sauce, Tay Ninh rice paper, Can Gio pineapple fish, Khanh Hoa bird's nest, Dak Lak avocado... In particular, OCOP products sold at Saigon Co.op's retail system meet 3-4 star standards. Some OCOP products are also selected and developed to become private label products under the Co.op brand. Moreover, Co.opmart, Co.opXtra always support and prioritize the most prime locations in supermarkets for OCOP products, with signboards, attractive promotions... to make products easily accessible to consumers.

More than 1,000 OCOP products stimulate shopping

In response to Vietnam Cooperative Day (April 11), from now until April 23, Co.opmart and Co.opXtra will display more than 1,000 products with geographical indications from Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai, Tay Ninh, Dong Thap, Lam Dong, Dak Nong, Phu Quoc (Kien Giang), Thanh Hoa, Hanoi, Thai Nguyen... The product categories range from tea, coffee, rice, fish sauce, bird's nest, eel vermicelli, snakehead fish porridge, black garlic vermicelli to pennywort powder, turmeric starch... with discounts of 30-50%. In addition, many types of premium fresh fruits that meet 4-star OCOP standards such as Can Gio mango, Tay Ninh custard apple, Da Lat vegetables... are discounted up to 20%.

In addition, Co.opmart and Co.opXtra prioritize resources for goods from cooperatives, craft villages, and OCOP products. Some Co.opmart supermarkets coordinate with the provinces and cities where they are located to organize OCOP product festivals to introduce local specialties to consumers nationwide. Many Co.opmart and Co.opXtra supermarkets organize trial activities at points of sale, and Co.opmart member customers are refunded 10,000 VND with bills over 150,000 VND when purchasing OCOP products according to the program's rules.

https://www.sggp.org.vn/tao-khong-gian-cho-san-pham-ocop-post791015.html