Female Kaipen producers from Luang Prabang province sell their products at the recent Lao Food Festival in Vientiane.

Kaipen producers make their mark at the Lao Food Festival 2025

Women producers from Nambak and Viengkham districts in Luang Prabang province proudly showcased the exceptional quality of their riverweed snacks, Kaipen, at the Lao Food Festival in Vientiane. This marks their third consecutive year participating in the festival, reaffirming Kaipen’s growing reputation for quality and taste among both local and international visitors.
Since 2019, Wonders International, a South Korean NGO committed to enhancing agricultural value chains in Laos, has supported the Kaipen Women Producers Group by strengthening their organisational capacity, providing equipment and facilities, and offering training programs. These ongoing efforts, further strengthened by KOICA’s support since 2022, have expanded production, improve quality, and reach new markets, while encouraging new producer groups to join the initiative.
At the festival, Kaipen stood out as a must-try item, drawing significant attention from visitors. Nearly 90 percent of customers who tasted it expressed satisfaction and returned to purchase. Customers praised its delicious taste, clean and safe quality, and noted the absence of strange textures that they had experienced with other Kaipen products in the past.
This year, members from the Kaipen Community Business (KCB) Group from the villages of Bom, Lee, Boumvan, and Sopheuang brought 1,820 packages of Kaipen to the festival and successfully sold 1,200. The event provided a key opportunity to promote their products to both local and international audiences, for the groups to build networks, explore new markets, and gain hands-on experience in marketing, food preparation, hygiene, and presentation.
“We are grateful for the opportunity to participate in the Lao Food Festival, which helped us improve both our sales and preparation skills,” shared members of the four Kaipen Community Business groups. “Working as a team, rotating duties, and learning from each other made the experience even more rewarding.”
Looking ahead, the groups aim to return to the festival with improved packaging and a stronger promotional strategy, aspiring to reach wider local and international markets. As their skills and confidence grow, the women producers are expected to play an even greater role in production, sales, and community development.

By Advertorial Desk
 (Latest Update May 2, 2025)