Van Pa pig, a native animal, is a specialty of Quang Tri. People hunt and buy it to celebrate Tet.

Van Pa pig - a specialty pig is a native breed of the people of Dakrong mountainous district, Quang Tri province. This breed of pig only eats fresh vegetables and grass, the meat quality is excellent, becoming a specialty that is "hunted" by customers, especially during Tet holiday.

On the days before the Lunar New Year of At Ty 2025, we were present at Huong Hiep agricultural cooperative (Phu An village, Huong Hiep commune, Dakrong district, Quang Tri) to learn about Van Pa specialty pigs.

Van Pa pig - a Quang Tri specialty that is popular during Tet thanks to its delicious meat quality. Photo: Ngoc Vu.

Receiving us with a bright smile, Mr. Do Van Anh (born in 1980) - Director of Huong Hiep Agricultural Cooperative said that on the occasion of the Lunar New Year 2025, the cooperative sold more than 200 Van Pa pigs to customers.

"Many customers ordered late, we didn't have Van Pa pigs to sell, they regretted it..., in general, it was very popular" - Mr. Anh shared.

Mr. Anh said that Van Pa pigs are a native breed of the Van Kieu and Pa Ko people in Dakrong district. Over time, there was a time when the Van Pa pig breed was almost extinct.

Thanks to the efforts of local authorities and scientists , this breed of pig has been restored and is still in the process of repopulating and developing.

Van Pa pigs eat natural vegetables and grass, have high resistance and are easy to raise. Photo: Ngoc Vu.

As for Mr. Anh, in 2021 he started raising Van Pa pigs on a concentrated scale. To do this, Mr. Anh bought and rented 2 hectares of land, invested in building barns, drilling wells, installing irrigation systems... for raising livestock.

In 2023, Mr. Anh and 6 other members of the Van Kieu ethnic group established the Huong Hiep agricultural cooperative.

From a few initial breeding pigs, Huong Hiep agricultural cooperative now regularly raises 150 to 200 Van Pa pigs. Not only that, this cooperative also provides breeding pigs to people throughout Dakrong district.

Mr. Anh said that Van Pa pigs only mate naturally, giving birth twice a year, each litter has from 8 to 12 pigs.

Van Pa pigs have very good resistance but slow growth rate. Industrial pigs can be sold at about 3 months old with a weight of up to 80kg/head. Van Pa pigs must be raised for 6 months before being sold, weighing only 25kg - 30kg.

Giant tea trees are very good food for Van Pa pigs. Photo: Ngoc Vu.

According to Mr. Anh, raising Van Pa pigs is quite simple because this breed of pig only eats natural vegetables and grass. On an area of ​​more than 1 hectare of land, Mr. Anh grows sweet potato, elephant grass, and giant tea. These plants are cut and ground by Mr. Anh and the members of the commune to feed the pigs.

Thanks to consuming natural food, Van Pa pigs have extremely delicious meat quality. That is why Van Pa has become a specialty of Quang Tri province, "hunted" by diners.

"Knowing that the quantity is limited, every year 2 months before Tet, customers order Van Pa pork. With the selling price of 150,000 VND per kg of live pig, customers still do not hesitate to spend money, many people are even angry when the product is out of stock" - Mr. Anh shared.

Each member of Huong Hiep agricultural cooperative earns 7.5 million VND/month from raising Van Pa pigs and goats. These two types of animals like to eat natural plants and grass and are easy to raise. Photo: Ngoc Vu.

Mr. Le Van Cuong (residing in Ward 1, Dong Ha City, Quang Tri Province) said that in 2022, his family bought a Van Pa pig to celebrate Tet. Fascinated by the aroma and sweetness of Van Pa pork, in the following years, Mr. Cuong continued to order early.

Faced with a situation where supply cannot meet demand, Mr. Anh hopes to access preferential loans so that Huong Hiep agricultural cooperative can expand its livestock scale, bring the Van Pa pig brand further, and increase income for the Van Kieu - Pa Ko people.

Mr. Le Dai Loi - Vice Chairman of Dakrong District People's Committee said that Van Pa pig specialty has the opportunity to become a brand, a typical product of Quang Tri province if it is invested in development, expanded farming scale, increased output to supply the market.

Source: https://danviet.vn/heo-van-pa-con-dong-vat-ban-dia-la-dac-san-quang-tri-dan-san-lung-mua-ve-an-tet-2025012510564124.htm