Vietnam is moving quickly to turn its role as a bulk coffee supplier into a platform for higher-value processed products, as new data show fast growth in instant and roasted coffee exports alongside major factory investments. The shift, reported by Vietnam Investment Review, comes as global buyers demand more traceability, quality and sustainability from the world’s second-largest coffee exporter.
According to Vietnam Investment Review, more than 90 per cent of Vietnam’s coffee exports still leave the country as raw green beans, even as total export earnings reached a record $5.62 billion in 2024 on nearly 1.35 million tonnes shipped. Yet processed coffee is expanding quickly: in the 2023–2024 crop year, exports of roasted, instant and other processed products rose 42 per cent to 127,500 tonnes, at an average export price of just over $7,600 per tonne.
The same report notes that by mid-November 2025, processed coffee export value had reached $1.46 billion, up 58 per cent year-on-year. Earlier data from Vietnam Investment Review show that in the 2022–2023 crop, processed coffee exports totalled over 89,900 tonnes worth $511 million, indicating a rapid increase in both volume and value over two seasons.
Price differentials are reinforcing the turn toward processing. A government summary cited by Vietnam.vn puts the average export price of raw coffee beans in the 2024/2025 crop at about $5,610 per tonne, while forecast figures for roasted, instant and blended coffee exports by 2025 suggest an average price around $9,760 per tonne [UNVERIFIED]. In a separate industry overview, The Investor reports that processed coffee, especially instant, now accounts for around 10 per cent of output with an average value of $6,000 per tonne.
Large Vietnamese exporters are positioning themselves at the centre of this shift. Vinh Hiep Co., Ltd. is investing $710 million in five projects, including a freeze-drying and spray-drying plant with capacity of 18,000 tonnes per year, according to Vietnam Investment Review. The company aims to produce high-end products and use by-products for organic fertiliser that meets EU and US clean standards, the outlet reported.
At a March 2026 investment conference in Gia Lai province, the provincial newspaper Gia Lai Online highlighted that Gia Lai contributes nearly 100,000 hectares of coffee and around 250,000 tonnes of annual output. In the same coverage, the outlet stated that Vinh Hiep accounts for about 12 per cent of Vietnam’s export volume, partners with more than 15,000 farming households over 25,000 hectares, and operates in over 60 countries with shipments exceeding 80,000 tonnes per year.
Vinh Hiep’s financial weight in the national sector is also growing. Vietnam Investment Review reports that in the 2024–2025 season the company generated over $769 million in export value, equivalent to 9.3 per cent of Vietnam’s total coffee export turnover.
Other major players are upgrading to meet stricter import rules, particularly from Europe. Vietnam Investment Review notes that Simexco Daklak’s revenue reached VND 18.189 trillion in 2025, up from VND 9.407 trillion in 2024. In the same dataset, Simexco is credited with implementing digital mapping and traceability updates for 48,000 farmers, enabling 100 per cent of its raw material areas to comply with the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR).
The EU market has become a key outlet for these efforts. An analysis by VnEconomy shows that the EU accounted for 40.7 per cent of Vietnam’s coffee export value in 2025, with imports exceeding 666,000 tonnes and $3.63 billion in value, up 68.3 per cent year-on-year. In May 2025, the same outlet reported that the EU classified Vietnam as “low-risk” under the EUDR, with inspection rates around 1 per cent.
Industry voices frame deep processing as central to securing long-term returns from this trade. Coffee expert Nguyen Quang Binh told Vietnam Investment Review that “investing in processing technology and brand building is the fastest way to export high-value coffee.” At a separate event covered by The Investor, Simexco Dak Lak deputy general director Nguyen Tien Dung argued that raising the deep processing rate to 40–45 per cent is essential to ensure sustainable benefits for Vietnamese growers.
Despite the momentum, companies still face significant hurdles. In comments quoted by Vietnam Investment Review, Nguyen Tien Dung said that inconsistent raw material quality, high investment costs and pressure to comply with international standards on traceability and supply-chain transparency are limiting wider participation in deep processing.
Regulatory change in Europe is adding urgency to these investments. According to VnEconomy, the EUDR will require coffee entering the EU to be deforestation-free after 31 December 2020 and compliant with producer-country laws, with full enforcement for large companies from late 2026 and for small and medium-sized firms from mid-2027.
Underlying these structural shifts is a period of strong prices. From January 1 to November 15, 2025, coffee exports reached nearly 1.35 million tonnes valued at $7.64 billion, up 14.6 per cent in volume and 62.3 per cent in value compared with the same period of 2024, according to Vietnam Investment Review. The publication also reported that the average export price in the first half of November 2025 was $5,792 per tonne, with a year-to-date average of $5,662 per tonne, 41.6 per cent higher than in 2024.
For buyers worldwide, Vietnam’s place in the supply mix remains significant: The Investor estimates national coffee output at 1.7–1.8 million tonnes per year, with robusta exports alone reaching 1.08 million tonnes and $5.54 billion between January and mid-November 2025, as reported by Vietnam Investment Review.
