Ca Mau is famous for many specialties such as: dried foods, fish sauce, crab, rice paper, etc. In the age of technology, transportation is more convenient, dried foods, fish sauce and Ca Mau specialties can also "travel" further, gradually becoming unique gifts for many people, a dish for Ca Mau children living far away from home when they miss home. This year, due to the epidemic, specialties during Tet are also facing more difficulties than many years ago.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Nhu Huynh, 30 years old, in Ward 8, Ca Mau City, shared: “As a Ca Mau native working far from home, every time Tet approaches, I ask my relatives to buy my hometown’s specialties as gifts for my friends... at work. Because in the city, they will not know or rarely eat Ca Mau’s specialties and I think they will enjoy them more than the normal dishes in the city.”

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hoang, 51 years old, in Ward 9, Ca Mau City, shared: “I have lived far from home for many years now, and every time I have a chance, my friends ask me to buy some delicious dishes in Ca Mau. Seeing that, I started to make dried and fish sauce to sell. Others asked me to buy at wholesale prices to resell, making a profit to cover the cost of returning home.”

Compared to previous years, this year's Tet specialty business has encountered some difficulties due to the pandemic. The supply is still abundant and diverse, but inter-provincial transportation is not as easy as before.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Kieu, born in 1978, owner of Thuan Kieu clean food store, No. 26, Street No. 6, Ward 1, Ca Mau City, shared: “I do business directly at the store and also do business online with Ca Mau specialties. This year, I import a variety of specialties to sell wholesale and retail in and outside the province. Up to this point, the amount of goods shipped each day has decreased compared to last year. On average, I send about 1 ton of specialties per day. In general, this year, due to the difficulties in transporting goods, shipping costs are higher than many previous years, so the profit is less. Prices have increased slightly, because input prices have also increased.”

Ms. Nguyen Thi Kieu is busy with year-end orders.

Although the epidemic situation is still complicated, Ca Mau specialties still attract diners inside and outside the province. In general, the prices of Ca Mau specialties this year have increased slightly compared to previous years. However, in return, they are very diverse in design, form and quality, which is increasingly appreciated.

Ms. Kieu informed: “Normal goods will increase in price during peak season, but this year the price has increased due to the impact of the epidemic. Because I mainly sell wholesale, I only dare to increase slightly, but instead, I commit to quality and try to find good shipping sources to share with customers.”

Some dried specialties and Ca Mau fish sauce are not sold simply by the kilo as before, but are industrialized in design, packaging, vacuum-sealed and accompanied by dipping sauce in each product. With eye-catching appearance and improved quality, despite the epidemic, customers inside and outside the province are still interested in, favoring and choosing Ca Mau specialties for family use and as Tet gifts./.

Ngoc Tram Phung

Source: https://baocamau.vn/dac-san-hut-khach-dip-tet-a2222.html