Vietnam to hold fourth coffee festival

The Fourth Buon Me Thuot Coffee Festival will be held in Buon Me Thuot City of Vietnam\'s central highlands Dak Lak province, from March 9 to 12, under the theme \" Buon Me Thuot Coffee Connectivity and Development\", organizers announced on Tuesday. Organized by local Dak Lak People\'s Committee and related agencies, the 4th coffee festival will introduce to visitors, both domestic and foreign, about the Vietnamese coffee production and trading towards sustainable development, hence highlighting local coffee brands to the world markets. Sideline events will include seminars, trade promotion events, exhibitions, and artistic performances. Coffee is one of Vietnam\'s top seven commodities having high export value of over 1 billion U.S. dollars annually. The central highlands provinces, including Dak Lak province, have been famous for high quality coffee. In 2012, Vietnam exported 1.73 million tons of coffee, earning 3.68 billion U.S. dollars, up 37.9 percent in volume and 33.9 percent in value year on year.