Considered a "national treasure" of Vietnam, Ngoc Linh ginseng is a precious medicinal herb and a crop that helps alleviate poverty for the people. This is why the people in the Ngoc Linh mountain region actively protect, preserve, and develop this valuable medicinal plant. However, preserving the genetic resources and developing the Ngoc Linh ginseng brand is a challenging journey.
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| People in Kon Tum province are taking care of Ngoc Linh ginseng plants. |
Tu Mo Rong District in Kon Tum Province is known to tourists as the "capital" of Ngoc Linh ginseng in Kon Tum Province. The Ngoc Linh mountain range, shrouded in fog and cold rain year-round, with its extensive natural forest cover, provides ideal conditions for the growth and development of precious medicinal herbs.
Participating in ginseng cultivation on the Ngoc Linh mountain range, Mr. A Linh (Pu Ta village, Mang Ri commune, Tu Mo Rong district) said: Every year, after harvesting, people bring ginseng seeds into the old forest to sow. By March, the seedlings sprout and produce tubers. About 5 months later, the ginseng plants begin to grow well and can be transplanted under the forest canopy.
However, this time of year marks the beginning of the rainy season, making ginseng plants susceptible to root rot and death. Therefore, people have to wait until around October or November, when the weather is drier, to begin a new planting season. At that time, groups of households will go into the forest together, gently uprooting the ginseng seedlings from the nursery; they are carefully handled to protect the roots, and then transplanted to the prepared planting area. After uprooting, the plants must be planted immediately; if left for two or three days, they will weaken and die.
According to Mr. A Linh, when sowing seeds, the success rate is only about 60% to 70%. When planted, the survival rate decreases each year. From planting to harvesting, the survival rate is only 30% to 40% of the plants. Therefore, although it is called cultivated ginseng, in reality, the seedlings are sown from seeds and grown naturally in the forest. The planting process does not involve any pesticides or fertilizers during the plant's growth and development.
Mr. A Duc (Long Hy village, Mang Ri commune, Tu Mo Rong district) said: Many people still confuse Ngoc Linh ginseng with wild Panax notoginseng. Ngoc Linh ginseng only grows on the slopes of mountains, where it is often covered in mist. The distinguishing features are that Ngoc Linh ginseng has two round tubers at the base, with roots that protrude like bamboo roots, yellow in color, usually smaller and longer; the dark brown core indicates that the ginseng is old and contains many active ingredients; while wild Panax notoginseng has roots that usually resemble a mouse's tail and are slightly black in color.
According to Vo Trung Manh, Chairman of the People's Committee of Tu Mo Rong District: Ngoc Linh ginseng is distributed in two provinces, Kon Tum and Quang Nam . Currently, Tu Mo Rong district has developed more than 2,800 hectares of Ngoc Linh ginseng. In the past 5 years, Ngoc Linh ginseng has contributed to helping nearly 2,000 households of the Xo Dang ethnic minority escape poverty; helping hundreds of households become wealthy, with some households earning tens of billions of VND each year.
The reality is that there have been cases of selling fake Ngoc Linh ginseng using tubers that look similar to genuine Ngoc Linh ginseng. The first to suffer are the customers, who spend large sums of money but don't buy the real product, while the dedicated growers suffer losses. Currently, one hectare of Ngoc Linh ginseng yields a value of over 30 billion VND, making it a highly valuable crop. However, this crop is facing the problem of counterfeit ginseng, causing significant losses to individuals, businesses, and cooperatives.
Professor, Dr. Nguyen Minh Duc, Faculty of Pharmacy - Ton Duc Thang University, Ho Chi Minh City, stated: Due to price differences of hundreds of millions of dong between some types of ginseng and Ngoc Linh ginseng, along with the smuggling of cheap, uncontrolled quality wild Panax notoginseng from China into Vietnam, the ginseng market is unstable and uncontrolled, leading to widespread smuggling and counterfeit goods, affecting the image and reputation of Ngoc Linh ginseng and causing losses to consumers. In addition, Vietnam's ginseng development strategy is not yet truly rigorous and scientific... which has created difficulties for the development of Vietnamese ginseng in general and Ngoc Linh ginseng in particular.
According to Decision No. 611/QD-TTg dated June 1, 2023, of the Prime Minister on the program for the development of Vietnamese ginseng until 2030, with orientation to 2045, Ngoc Linh ginseng has been oriented towards developing into a commodity that brings economic value to ginseng growers.
Over the past period, the leaders of Kon Tum province, and especially the leaders of Tu Mo Rong district, have issued many policy documents to protect Ngoc Linh ginseng, but the desired results have not yet been achieved. The conservation and development of Ngoc Linh ginseng is a difficult and arduous journey.
However, undeterred by difficulties and hardships, the Xơ Đăng ethnic people at the foot of Ngọc Linh mountain have been doing to protect, preserve, and develop Vietnam's "national treasure," only planting genetically pure Ngọc Linh ginseng plants on-site, refusing to assist those who exploit the Ngọc Linh ginseng brand, and resolutely fighting against the practice of "disguising" Ngọc Linh ginseng as their own.
Minh Nghia and Phuc Thang
Source: https://nhandan.vn/bao-ve-thuong-hieu-sam-ngoc-linh-post854200.html
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