Impressed with the startup project from tire salt and pepper

The project “Production and trade of tire salt and pepper” by Ms. Le Nguyen Thao, owner of Kiet Tuong Pepper Facility (An Dien, Ben Cat City, Binh Duong - now Ho Chi Minh City) has just won the first prize in the 2025 Creative Startup Idea Presentation Contest organized by the Binh Duong Provincial Women's Union (now Ho Chi Minh City Women's Union). The impressive thing about the project is not only its creativity and sustainability but also the startup journey of the facility owner.

Realizing her husband's unfinished dream

Long pepper also has other names such as: long pepper, lost pepper, heart-leaf pepper. This is a pepper variety that has been grown by Ms. Le Nguyen Thao's husband's family for a long time. When her mother-in-law was old and weak and no longer had enough strength to take care of the garden, her husband brought this pepper variety back to plant on the couple's land in Binh Duong .

Although it is an old pepper variety, mainly grown in the Southeast region, long pepper does not grow as strongly as black pepper, so few people know about it.

In 2020, a tragedy struck Ms. Thao's family when her husband suddenly passed away, when her child was only 5 years old. "My husband loves agriculture very much. In 2016, he brought back tire pepper seeds to plant and patiently built a pepper garden.

After that, my family started selling dried pepper and 3-star OCOP products. After my husband passed away, I thought, if I abandon the pepper garden that he worked so hard to grow, all his efforts would be for nothing. I couldn’t bear it…”, Ms. Thao shared.

In June 2022, Ms. Thao decided to quit her job at a Japanese company based in Binh Duong province - where she used to be in charge of human resources. She devoted herself to taking over and developing Kiet Tuong Pepper Facility.

Ms. Le Nguyen Thao introduces her products

Not stopping at growing and selling dry pepper, Ms. Thao continues to research and innovate to increase the value of tire pepper by developing tire pepper salt products. She wants to create a clean, natural pepper salt product, using the pepper grown at home, both preserving the traditional flavor and preserving beautiful memories of her husband.

To have a standard salt and pepper jar is not simple. Ms. Thao spent more than 1 year researching and manufacturing to create the finished product. During the testing process, she realized that if she used the common salt floating on the market, it would not be safe, sometimes it even smelled like bleach.

She began her journey to many localities with many salt fields such as Binh Dinh, Ba Ria - Vung Tau , Quang Ngai to find pure, traditional salt sources. Finally, she chose Binh Dinh salt to import raw materials. The salt is hand-cooked by her facility in clay pots, using firewood, helping to reduce the salinity.

Tire pepper

When combined with long pepper, the flavor becomes rich, spicy, and the smell is pleasant. "All steps from selecting salt, processing, and drying pepper do not contain additives or preservatives. The long pepper ingredient in the salt is also quite a lot, creating a rich aroma," said Ms. Thao.

Sharing about the challenges of bringing products to market, Ms. Thao acknowledged: The spice market in Binh Duong is currently very competitive, especially in the edible salt and spice salt segments.

In the province, there are many small and medium-sized enterprises operating stably with chili salt and shrimp salt. Many brands have a certain position in the market, possess a stable customer network and long-term production experience. Facing long-standing names, Ms. Thao's facility cannot avoid great competitive pressure.

However, instead of competing on price or quantity, Ms. Thao chose the strategy of entering the customer segment that focuses on health, aiming at the criteria of "clean eating - green living". With this direction, salt and pepper tire has the opportunity to create its own position, targeting customer groups such as: vegetarian restaurants, clean food stores, households pursuing a healthy lifestyle.

Products of Kiet Tuong pepper facility

"My project is built on a circular agriculture model, organic pepper growing methods and traditional processing with modern scientific standards.

The facility is also coordinating with local schools to organize tours, popularize knowledge about craft villages, indigenous products and agricultural startups, thereby spreading the spirit of preserving traditional values ​​and raising community awareness, especially among the younger generation. I think that is the difference between my facility and other units," said Ms. Thao.

Improve products with honest feedback

Ms. Thao said: "At first, the local Women's Union introduced me to participate in trade promotion fairs. I only introduced dried pepper. The women commented that the product was too monotonous. After that, I researched more about pepper salt. They continued to support and guide me to perfect the design and packaging to make it attractive and eye-catching. At first, I only put it in small plastic jars like yogurt boxes."

The tire salt and pepper startup project has contributed to creating jobs for many local female workers. Photo: NVCC

Those sincere comments did not make her sad, but instead became the motivation for her to improve. Thanks to the support of the local Women's Union, she was guided in editing packaging and label designs, trained in presentation skills, branding, and updated on market trends.

Currently, Ms. Thao’s tire pepper garden is cultivated in an organic circular direction on an area of ​​1 hectare. Not only does she preserve traditional pepper varieties, she also creates jobs for many female workers, especially during the crop season, hiring seasonal workers, with priority given to local women.

"In Binh Duong province in general and Ben Cat city in particular, there is no enterprise that cultivates pepper and produces spice products with a pure combination of pepper and Vietnamese salt.

The participating projects were carefully invested, diverse in ideas, and spread across many fields such as handicrafts, food, tourism, agriculture, etc. The contestants effectively exploited the contest's theme. Many projects demonstrated serious preparation with clear plans and knew how to apply advanced technology. The project that won the first prize this year on tire pepper products was quite impressive. The project has contributed to solving employment for disadvantaged people, creating stable income for them; employing local female workers."

Mr. Phan Dinh Tuan Anh, Director of ANGELS 4 US Company Limited, member of the jury of the 2025 Creative Startup Idea Presentation Contest organized by the Binh Duong Provincial Women's Union

Our facility has used and developed local resources, creating typical local products. Our products have been certified as 3-star OCOP and are gradually appearing in the meals of many families. This initial success is not only for me but also a motivation for other women to be more confident, dare to think, dare to do," Ms. Thao shared.

Ms. Thao is working on upgrading the certification of tire salt and pepper products to 4-star OCOP. Currently, the facility has main product lines such as: tire salt and pepper, dried tire pepper, salt stewed in clay pots...

In the near future, Ms. Thao plans to bring her products to e-commerce platforms and expand her distribution network in Binh Duong and neighboring provinces. Furthermore, she also has the idea of ​​creating a pepper wine product for massage. This is a new direction from local ingredients.

"I believe that my products with clean salt and local pepper will have a great opportunity in the mid-range spice segment, especially in the context of consumers increasingly concerned about health and traceability," Ms. Thao excitedly shared.

Source: https://phunuvietnam.vn/an-tuong-voi-du-an-khoi-nghiep-tu-muoi-tieu-lop-20250630134746356.htm