HÀ NỘI — The finest foodstuffs from mountainous and highlands provinces, which won people's hearts for their delicious and unique taste, can be found at the Spring Fair 2026, currently taking place at the National Exposition Centre in Đông Anh Commune, Hà Nội.

In every booth, visitors can taste regional specialties and listen to stories of their origins and production methods from ethnic community sellers, who are proud to promote their culture and customs to the wider public.

Welcoming customers with a smile, Nông Thị Nhất put her pride on display as she introduced fruit from the Po Mỹ Agricultural, Forestry and General Trade Service Co-operative in Lào Cai Province.

She said all of the agricultural products from the region's mountains and forests, such as rice, vegetables, honey and characteristic spices of the northwest, as well as handmade products from highland people and ethnic groups, were carefully selected to be showcased at the fair.

Nhất expressed the hope that during the fair, people would directly try out these specialties, so that afterwards she would have a larger number of customers buying her products online.

Next to her booth, Việt Shan Tea Company from Tuyên Quang Province and Tà Xùa Ancient Tea Co-operative from Sơn La also drew many visitors, who enjoyed cups of tea with a pure aroma.

Planted in mountainous terrain thousands of metres above sea level, unique high-altitude teas like Shan Tuyết, white tea, and Dragon Claw or Ya Bao tea offered their unique and addictive flavours.

Visitors also tried tea made from ancient trees and pressed into cakes, with the largest one featuring a map of Việt Nam weighing up to 12kg.

Phạm Thị Việt Hà, deputy director of Tây Bắc Tea and Specialty Company, which produces the Shanam Shan Tuyết tea brand, said that making a tea cake is very laborious. The tea leaves are harvested from ancient trees that are at least 200 years old and grow at an altitude of over 1,000m in Tà Xùa Mountain, Sơn La Province.

"Unlike regular teas, Shan Tuyết tea is not dried using machines or conventional temperatures, but is sun-dried, naturally fermented and mainly harvested and processed by the H'mông people in the area," said Hà.

"The tea cakes are therefore said to remain alive, like the trees in the forest, retaining their original tea flavour. It takes a whole year to produce just one tea cake."

She added that each tea bud is not only a business product, but also a mission to preserve the heritage tea forest. 

Along with its signature Shan Tuyết tea, Hà’s company has researched and developed a variety of other tea products, including white, green, black and yellow teas that meet OCOP four-star standards. These products are intended for both daily consumption and gift-giving, and are often combined with other northwest specialties for a wide range of occasions, especially Tết (Lunar New Year).

"We expect that through this fair, Shan Tuyết tea and specialties from the northwestern mountain region will reach more customers, become more popular, gain more recognition and boost the development of our business," Hà said.

Visitors will also be told about the aspirations and efforts of A Mềnh, a young man who has worked to transform ancient, naturally growing tea trees into products known to domestic and international customers.

His contributions to bringing local specialties to the international stage have made wild tea plants a more lucrative livelihood for many people in the area around Tuyên Quang's Tây Côn Lĩnh Mountain.

Nguyễn Thị Hoan, director of Tài Hoan Co-operative from Thái Nguyên Province, brought her family's traditional vermicelli to the fair.

After 40 years in the business, the co-operative has invested in machinery, equipment and product research to update and continue its traditional production methods, listening to customers to improve the products.

Her five-star OCOP product has its own distinctive flavour, using no preservatives or additives. Yet the vermicelli retains the unique taste of arrowroot, with its chewy, soft and elastic texture.

Along with vermicelli, Hoan also brought dried bamboo shoots along with wood ear and shiitake mushrooms, which are popular ingredients for many families' Tết meals. She hopes that Hà Nội residents will learn about her local specialties.

Many other food products, such as thắng cố (a traditional stew), grilled freshwater fish, five-colour sticky rice, smoked beef, buffalo meat, pork and sausages can also be found at the fair.

The fair will run until February 13. — VNS