In Lam Dong province, the OCOP Program has helped many farmers, businesses, and cooperatives to effectively unlock and promote their potential and advantages and create many valuable and branded products, thus helping transform production models and increase people's income.

According to the Lam Dong Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, after three years of OCOP Program implementation, local OCOP products have increased rapidly in quantity and value. In the beginning, Lam Dong province set a goal of creating 20 products but it now has 123 products, of which 51 are assigned a 3-star class, 65 are certified 4-star and seven are submitted to the National OCOP Product Evaluation Council for 5-star recognition. Through this program, many local agricultural products have earned star recognition and reached the market, including Lam Ha macadamia, Oolong tea, Da Lat vegetables and flowers, air-dried persimmons using Japanese technology, artichokes, Catimo and Cau Dat arabica coffee, Quyt Da Teh sticky rice, Hat Ngoc Cat Tien rice, LaBa Phu Son banana, and Chau Ma wine in Buon Go village.

Along with impressive results, the OCOP Program in Lam Dong has also left a lot of valuable lessons and experiences and upheld the creativity of stakeholders. A typical example is Truong Phuc Hydroponic Vegetable Farm in Da Sar commune, Lac Duong district. The farm’s products are certified 3-star class, which required it to spend VND2.2 billion on building greenhouses and VND5.5 billion on installing a reflux hydroponic system and ancillary equipment. In addition, the farm has also adopted European vegetable tending standards and packaging processes. Seeing the operating scale and process of the farm, visitors will certainly feel how devoted the farm owner is to products.

Mr. Nguyen Van Chau, Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said, Lam Dong province has given priority to the development of locally distinctive products, products made with sophisticated technology and intensive processing to increase the value; fostered connectivity of stakeholders, with the focus placed on linkage between companies and farming households; assessed and ranked OCOP products; and prioritized advertising and trade promotion of OCOP products.

Upholding its achievements, Lam Dong province targets to have 168 more OCOP products by 2025; 70 products meeting 3-star class; 80 products earning 4-star class; and 18 products of 5-star class. At present, 130 producers have registered to participate in the OCOP Program, including 26 cooperatives, 95 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and nine individual households. The effect of the OCOP Program has caught the great attention of many cooperatives, farmer households and businesses, thus helping speed up transformation of production models, increase economic performance and raise incomes for rural people in Lam Dong province.