Cu Lao May is bustling with Tet rice paper season

Cu Lao May rice paper village currently has 71 production households, of which 14 households participate in the Cooperative. In 2009, Cu Lao May rice paper village was recognized by Vinh Long province as a traditional craft village. Grasping the needs and tastes of customers, the villagers have boldly improved their products, creating many new types of rice paper, not only for customers to buy but also as gifts such as spring roll rice paper, sweet rice paper, grilled rice paper, chili rice paper, milk rice paper, salty rice paper, dragon fruit rice paper...

Director of Cu Lao May Rice Paper Cooperative, Mr. Luong Van Thong, said that this year, the prices of input materials such as sugar, milk, rice, fuel, etc. have all increased, so the price of rice paper has to increase by 5,000 - 10,000 VND/dozen compared to the same period last year. Accordingly, dipped rice paper is sold for 18,000 VND/dozen, sweet rice paper is 40,000 VND/dozen, grilled rice paper is 100,000 VND/dozen... In 2023, the Cooperative will have a total output of over 710,000 cakes/year, revenue of over 1 billion VND, profit of over 300 million VND/year, creating jobs for more than 50 workers. In particular, in 2020, the Cooperative was certified by the province as a 3-star OCOP standard. “ Thanks to improving products from design to quality and actively participating in product promotion, Cu Lao May Cooperative rice paper is now consumed in many provinces and cities, even being bought by tourists as gifts for friends abroad. From there, we seek opportunities to expand the market, bringing joy and hope to those who are attached to the profession,” said Mr. Thong.

Mr. Luong Van Thong dries dragon fruit rice paper with attractive flavor and color.

On the days before Tet, the traditional rice paper village of Cu Lao May becomes bustling and busy. The scenes of making rice paper, drying rice paper, and packaging take place quickly and happily... Rice paper making takes place all year round. Usually, at around 3am, the ovens start to blow fire, make dough... to prepare to make rice paper until late afternoon. Mrs. Tran Thi Tuyet Mai in Tan Thanh hamlet, Luc Si Thanh commune, is busy producing delicious rice paper and recalls: "I learned how to make rice paper when I was 17 years old, and have been following the profession until now. Compared to other places, Cu Lao May rice paper is considered by customers to be more delicious because of its elasticity, toughness and less breakage. To make delicious rice paper, you must choose the right type of rice, combined with the secret of mixing sugar, milk, sesame, coconut... It is the elaborate preparation that helps Cu Lao May rice paper have its own flavor that consumers love. Perhaps that is why this craft village has maintained its vitality for a long time and has spread to many other places."

No one remembers exactly when the Cu Lao May rice paper craft village was born, but over the past hundred years, many generations of people here have grown up with the craft. The children of the craft village have joined hands to preserve and bring the Cu Lao May rice paper brand further and further. Ms. Tran Thi Thuy Lieu, Luc Si Thanh commune, a member of the Cu Lao May cooperative, said: “The rice paper making profession has been attached to her family for many generations. Loving this profession, for over 30 years she has been experimenting to make the rice paper more delicious and beautiful. Thanks to being trained, she has learned and applied many new things to production, packaging and selling products. Since then, her rice paper has become known to many people and is widely consumed through many social networking channels such as Facebook and Zalo. The cake is still made from familiar ingredients such as rice, sesame, coconut milk... but I add dragon fruit to make it more eye-catching in color and different in flavor.”

Rice paper production process May Island

Ms. Nguyen Thi Phuong Lan, manager of Tam Trong Tourist Area, one of the most attractive destinations on Cu Lao May shared: “Cu Lao May rice paper craft village is an attractive destination for tourists when coming to Vinh Long. Currently, thousands of visitors come here every weekend, visitors come to the craft village to visit, experience the rice paper making process and buy rice paper as gifts for family and friends, contributing to increasing income for the people”.

Mr. Huynh Van Thang, Chairman of the People's Committee of Luc Si Thanh Commune , said: "It can be said that the rice paper production profession in Cu Lao May in general and the Cooperative in particular are making significant progress in the direction of applying modern technology, meeting quality and food safety and hygiene standards. The current issue is that the Cooperative needs to closely connect with the craft village households, from spontaneous, small-scale business to the direction of cooperative production according to large-scale orders and expanding consumption markets. From there, the craft village can be put into continuous production, helping people increase their income and get rich with their own traditional products."

Cu Lao May rice paper, whether made by traditional manual methods or modern machines, requires the hard work and skill of the craftsman, but in return, the cake has a special flavor that cannot be found anywhere else. In order for the Cu Lao May rice paper brand to continue to grow, it is necessary to have the attention, investment and support of the State to create a stable output for the product, in addition to economic development, ensuring income, also to preserve and develop the brand and identity of the Cu Lao May rice paper craft village.

PHUONG MINH

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