At the height of her professional success, Nguyen Thi Thu, born in 1978 and hailing from Ho Chi Minh City’s Tam Thang Ward, made an unexpected turn. She left a Japanese corporation where she earned thousands of dollars a month to pursue a new calling in organic agriculture in her hometown.
In 2018, Thu decided to leave central Ho Chi Minh City and return home to start a business in the field of technology, her area of expertise. But during a visit to Chau Duc (now Binh Gia Commune, Ho Chi Minh City), she was captivated by the lush green cacao gardens stretching before her eyes.
The vibrant cacao pods—shimmering in hues of green, yellow, and deep red—sparked in her a passion for agriculture she didn’t know was waiting to surface. Yet the more she learned, the more disheartened she became. Once spanning over 1,000 hectares, the cacao-growing area in Chau Duc had shrunk to just 300 hectares by 2019. The “superfood” praised worldwide for its exceptional nutritional value was being abandoned by local farmers.
“Why can’t we tell a different story for cacao?” Thu asked herself. That question marked the beginning of her journey to build the OCA (Organic Cacao) brand.
With the founding of OCA Viet Nhat Company, she approached the challenge not as an idealistic newcomer but with the discipline of someone who had worked with the Japanese. She quickly realized that simple trading, buying and selling, could never solve the deeper issues facing farmers.
From the start, Thu envisioned OCA not merely as a chocolate producer but as a model of sustainable agriculture. OCA creates a full range of cacao-based products including chocolate, cacao powder, cacao tea, and cacao wine, while also making use of every part of the cacao fruit such as seeds, pulp, and husk.
The pulp is pressed into juice, the husk is turned into organic fertilizer, and the process forms a circular agricultural system that reduces waste, protects the environment, and generates added income for farmers.
As many farmers were losing interest in growing cacao, Thu personally visited each household, persuading them to switch to organic farming. She guaranteed to buy their produce at prices three to four times higher than the market rate. Over time, the price of fresh cacao pods rose from VND4,000 per kilogram to VND15,000 —a change that has become a “lifeline” for hundreds of farming families.
According to Thu, cacao may not make farmers instantly wealthy like black pepper or durian, but it offers stability and sustainability. The trees are easy to cultivate, bear fruit year-round, and provide consistent income. During peak season, a household can earn VND70 million–VND80 million from fresh cacao sales alone. “Thanks to OCA, we not only keep our gardens but also regain faith in cacao’s long-term value,” said farmer Le Thi Xuan.
Today, OCA exports organic cacao to demanding markets such as Japan, the Netherlands, and Singapore. Remarkably, its cacao wine became the first Vietnamese product of its kind exported to Japan.
Tran Van Mang, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Farmers’ Association, praised Thu’s model as “a shining example of creativity and effectiveness in sustainable agricultural development.”
Thu’s approach not only boosts farmers’ incomes but also builds a complete value chain from organic cultivation to deep product processing. By providing technical guidance and buying crops at premium prices, she has helped hundreds of households stabilize their income and preserve cacao farming.
Beyond production, Thu has expanded into educational tourism, giving students and visitors hands-on experiences in chocolate-making from farm to factory. This initiative raises awareness about clean, organic farming while strengthening trust in the value of Vietnamese cacao.
Through her work with OCA, Nguyen Thi Thu has played a key role in revitalizing the cacao industry in Ba Ria–Vung Tau Province, inspiring a community of farmers committed to responsible and sustainable agriculture.
