| Abstract: |
| The ‘Agroforestry for Livelihoods of Smallholder Farmers in the Northwest region of Vietnam’ (AFLI), a project funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) and implemented by ICRAF and research and extension partners in the northwest region, has identified Son tra as a target species for promotion in the highlands of Son La, Yen Bai, and Dien Bien which to be tested in on-farm trials. Local people collect Son tra fruits from existing trees inside natural forests and in government-supported plantations to sell to local collectors and traders. Today, Son tra is increasingly recognized as an important source of income for households, which can suit well in agroforestry systems. However, there remains a big gap on the knowledge of how the trees are planted, how fruits are harvested, processed, and marketed. A study was therefore needed to gain an understanding of existing market value chain, so as to identify interventions necessary to improve its performance. The market value chain analysis concluded with recommendations for immediate actions. Given the above issues, the development of Son tra value chain must be approached in three stages: Stage 1: Improving the production capacity at household level and resource management at provincial/district level; Stage 2: Increasing farmers’ marketing capacity, organizing activities to capitalize on improved skills, and supporting the distribution of high quality Son tra through supermarket distribution channels; and Stage 3: developing processing techniques in parallel with marketing activities to facilitate market penetration of higher value-added Son tra products, especially those which can potentially bring more benefits to smallholder farmers. |
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