Preserving the Dong Tao chicken brand

Hung Yen is a land with many historical and cultural relics, besides that, there is a whole world of cuisine with many famous products such as longan, banh rang bua, Ban soy sauce... Dong Tao chicken is also a specialty that cannot be missed when mentioning this place. Dong Tao chicken is also known as "chicken for the king", originating from Dong Tao village, Khoai Chau district. Since ancient times, this breed of chicken has been considered a precious breed, used as offerings to kings on important holidays and New Year. Currently, this breed of chicken is conserving its genetic resources to maintain the species.

Dong Tao chickens are carefully cared for by breeders.

Dong Tao chickens are a large breed of chickens, with a majestic appearance, a large body, red skin, and sturdy legs. The chickens also have rough legs, the rooster's legs are large and the front of the legs are surrounded by a layer of scaly skin arranged in irregular rows, the rest of the skin is rough like the surface of a strawberry, the four toes are spread out, the toes are clearly divided, the feet are thick and well-proportioned so the chickens walk steadily.

Dong Tao hens also have combs like roosters but they are only 1/3 as big as roosters. The featherless skin areas on the chickens' bodies (both roosters and hens) are red.

According to chicken farmers in Dong Tao commune, the old story is that every time Tet comes, spring comes, chicken farming villages in Hung Yen will choose the most beautiful, biggest, and most delicious chickens to offer to the kings of Vietnam. Dong Tao chicken with big feet is considered a symbol of strength, majesty, and authority - something that feudal kings always sought in tribute items. The soft, naturally sweet, fragrant, and nutritious meat was not only offered to the kings but also became a sought-after dish by wealthy and noble families at that time. Offering Dong Tao chicken to the king shows respect, sincerity, and the desire to bring luck and peace to the court and the country.

In fact, Dong Tao chickens are now raised in many places, so finding a pair of Dong Tao chickens for Tet is not difficult. However, finding a pair of beautiful, purebred Dong Tao chickens as a specialty for Tet is not easy. According to local people, Dong Tao chickens are divided into two types: commercial chickens and chickens for gifts. If they are commercial chickens, the price is only from 200,000 to 250,000 VND/kg, chickens for gifts will cost from several million VND to tens of millions of VND per chicken, depending on the shape of the chicken. Although having money, not everyone can buy purebred chickens because they are difficult to raise, difficult to care for, and limited in quantity. According to Dong Tao chicken breeders, the price of Dong Tao chickens depends not only on weight but also on many other factors such as legs, feather color, wings, etc.

As a person with many years of experience raising Dong Tao chickens, Mr. Nguyen Van Quan's family farm in Dong Kim village, Dong Tao commune is raising more than 3 thousand chickens. Sharing his experience in raising Dong Tao chickens, Mr. Quan said: To raise a beautiful Dong Tao chicken, the breeder must put in a lot of effort and dedication. Right from the stage of selecting the breed, it is very elaborate, having to choose purebred, healthy parent chickens and modern incubation techniques to produce quality chicks. Conditions of the barn, food and vaccination against diseases are also things that people pay special attention to when raising Dong Tao chickens. A beautiful Dong Tao chicken must have all the following factors: black feathers, wings like two oyster tongues folded on both sides of the ribs, big, red legs, scales arranged like carp scales and no deformities. A mature chicken can weigh up to 6 - 7kg/male, 4 - 5kg/female. Chickens are only considered mature after being raised for about 7 - 12 months. The price of Dong Tao chicken at the end of the year, before Tet, is often very high, but many gourmets often only like the legs and feet of the chicken and do not care about other parts. Not everyone dares to spend tens of millions of dong to buy a chicken to eat. Because the price of "genuine" Dong Tao chicken as a specialty for Tet is too expensive, only wealthy families can afford to buy it, so many people choose to buy hybrid chickens. As for hybrid Dong Tao chickens, although they are not as beautiful, the legs are not as big, the scales are not as rough as "genuine" chickens, because they have a reasonable price, they are sought after by housewives.

Mr. Le Quang Thang, Director of Dong Tao Chicken Breeding and Trading Cooperative, said: Most of Dong Tao chickens sold for meat on the market are crossbred chickens, rarely purebred chickens. To raise a purebred chicken from hatching to maturity, the breeder must spend nearly 2 years. Purebred chickens are very difficult to raise. In a flock of dozens of chickens, if successful, only one chicken with a beautiful appearance can be raised. Therefore, the selling price is very high, due to shortage of goods.

Comrade Nguyen Thanh Quyet, Chairman of Dong Tao Commune People's Committee said: To maintain the Dong Tao chicken brand, in September 2015, the Department of Intellectual Property ( Ministry of Science and Technology ) granted a Dong Tao chicken collective trademark certificate. This is the basis for this chicken breed to increasingly reach domestic and foreign markets.

Pham Dang

Source: https://baohungyen.vn/giu-gin-thuong-hieu-ga-dong-tao-3178608.html