"Keeping the flame alive" for traditional craft villages in Hai Lang.

With the support of local authorities and relevant agencies, several traditional craft villages in Hai Lang district have made significant efforts in preserving and developing their crafts in a way that harmonizes the preservation and promotion of traditional cultural values ​​with improving product quality, adapting to the market economy, contributing to the transformation of the rural economy, and creating jobs and stable income for the people.

My Thuy fish sauce products are manufactured by My An General Trading and Production Joint Stock Company - Photo: D.V.

Established over 500 years ago, the traditional fish sauce making craft in My Thuy village, Hai An commune, has been preserved and developed by the local people to this day. My Thuy fish sauce is known and loved by customers near and far for its exquisite quality and distinctive flavor. The main raw materials used to make My Thuy fish sauce are seafood harvested locally and raw materials (chop) imported from Cua Viet and Thuan An ( Hue ).

From small-scale production, the fish sauce processing industry in My Thuy has gradually become more organized and interconnected. To meet large orders, the My Thuy Fish Sauce Production Cooperative was established in 2020 with 5 participating households. To date, the cooperative sells an average of around 10,000 liters of fish sauce to the market each month.

According to Mr. Dang Hai Nhan, head of the My Thuy fish sauce production cooperative, participating in the cooperative not only helps households connect better with fish sauce consumers but also allows them to share and support each other in terms of experience, applying science and technology to production, and protecting the environment. In 2021, the cooperative's fish sauce product was certified as a 3-star OCOP product.

In addition, My Thuy fish sauce, produced by My An General Trading and Manufacturing Joint Stock Company in Hai An commune, was also recognized by the Provincial People's Committee and awarded a 4-star OCOP product certificate in 2022.

According to Nguyen Cong Tuan, Vice Chairman of the Hai An Commune People's Committee: In 2012, the Quang Tri Provincial People's Committee recognized My Thuy traditional fish sauce village. In 2018, the My Thuy traditional fish sauce village was granted a trademark certificate by the Intellectual Property Office. Currently, 41 households in My Thuy village participate in fish sauce production, of which 28 are registered businesses and possess all necessary food safety and hygiene certificates.

Mr. Tuan said that the My Thuy fish sauce making village is developing well, creating stable jobs for more than 200 local workers. “In 2024, the volume of fish sauce sold to the market reached 999,400 liters. The market for fish sauce is expanding, distributing to many provinces and cities nationwide, helping many households achieve economic stability, and some even earn high incomes.”

"Currently, the local authorities are supporting and encouraging households to continue improving the quality and promoting My Thuy OCOP 3-star fish sauce and My An OCOP 4-star fish sauce so that the products can reach further and have a firm foothold in the market," Mr. Tuan said.

Established about a century ago, the traditional rice noodle making village of Phuong Lang in Hai Binh commune has become the livelihood of generations of local people and has been maintained to this day. According to the elders in Phuong Lang, in the days when rice noodles were made manually using clay ovens and wood-fired stoves, there were about 350 households engaged in the craft. However, with the development and division of labor in society, machinery has been applied to rice noodle production to reduce labor and increase productivity, so currently only 6 households in the village still produce rice noodles using machines.

Nevertheless, the households still produce steamed rice rolls using the traditional process that has been passed down for hundreds of years in the village. Phuong Lang steamed rice rolls have created their own brand and retain customers with their thin, chewy, and uniquely delicious rolls, made from Khang Dan rice grains.

According to Mr. Le Huu Nam, owner of a fairly large-scale rice noodle production facility in Phuong Lang village, the rice is washed, rinsed, and soaked in clean water for about 5 hours before being ground into flour and steamed in a steamer system. Mr. Nam stated that to maintain the traditional Phuong Lang rice noodle brand, the villagers strictly adhere to the village's regulations regarding food safety and hygiene, prohibiting the use of chemicals in production.

“My mother’s generation used to make rice paper rolls entirely by hand: grinding the flour with a stone mortar and steaming the rolls in a clay oven heated by charcoal, which was very laborious and resulted in low productivity. Now that I’ve taken over, modern machinery has replaced manual labor in every step, from grinding the flour to steaming the rolls – everything is automated. It’s much more productive, convenient, and the quality of the rolls is consistently good, even better than before,” Nam explained.

Since opening his rice noodle production facility in 2009, Mr. Nam has received support in the form of a biogas digester system, which both processes waste and provides fuel for his family's daily life. From 2019 to the present, his facility has continued to receive support from the district and commune authorities, including vacuum packaging machines, packaging materials, labels, and product traceability systems, worth tens of millions of VND.

From initial difficulties, Mr. Nam's facility has now achieved stable production with a production line operating 10 hours a day, producing 3-4 quintals of rice cakes daily, selling wholesale to customers and indirectly providing stable employment for more than 20 women who sell the cakes retail at markets and residential areas. "Thanks to support with packaging, labels, and vacuum sealing machines, our rice cakes are more widely known, have a longer shelf life, and reach a wider market."

Currently, in addition to providing a stable supply to wholesalers within and outside the district, my rice noodle business is also sold in Ho Chi Minh City at a rate of about 300 kg per week. I am very happy because the business has helped my family improve our economic situation while also creating jobs and stable income for many local people,” Mr. Nam happily said.

It is known that Phuong Lang rice noodle production now has its own packaging and labels, and the product has been registered and protected as a collective trademark at the Intellectual Property Office. It is estimated that Phuong Lang rice noodle production facilities sell nearly 1,000 tons of noodles annually, generating a total revenue of approximately 6-7 billion VND. The rice noodle making industry has provided employment for hundreds of direct and indirect workers, with an average income of about 5-6 million VND per person per month.

According to Hoang Tan Thong, Chairman of the People's Committee of Hai Binh commune, the traditional Phuong Lang rice noodle making village is currently maintaining good production and a relatively large volume of products on the market, creating stable income for the people. To promote the development of the village in the future, the locality is currently planning an organic rice production area to supply raw materials for the village.

Duc Viet

Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/giu-lua-lang-nghe-truyen-thong-o-hai-lang-192419.htm