The first International Ginseng and Medicinal Herb Festival is being held in Ho Chi Minh City.

Báo Xây dựng•24/05/2024

The 2024 Ho Chi Minh City International Ginseng, Spices, and Medicinal Herbs Festival attracted thousands of locals and tourists. This included 13 international delegations and over 150 domestic and international businesses operating in the ginseng, spices, and medicinal herbs sectors.

Mr. Vo Van Hoan, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City, acknowledged that Vietnam possesses many valuable medicinal plants recognized worldwide , such as star anise, cinnamon, artichoke, Ngoc Linh ginseng, Lai Chau ginseng, golden orchid, wild Panax notoginseng, red pine, and Coptis chinensis, and has established specialized areas for cultivating and producing these medicinal plants.

Currently, the total production of medicinal plants grown in Vietnam is estimated at about 100,000 tons per year. This includes many valuable, rare, and endemic medicinal plant species that have both high economic value and medicinal uses, such as Ngoc Linh ginseng, Lai Chau ginseng, golden orchid, wild Panax notoginseng, red pine, and Coptis chinensis…

However, current investment resources for the development of medicinal plants are still limited, most products are self-sufficient, lacking linkages and, in particular, lacking information about the international market.

Therefore, the Government has issued many policies and mechanisms to encourage investment and development in the ginseng, spice, and medicinal herb industries.

"Ho Chi Minh City does not grow ginseng and does not have medicinal herb growing areas, but it is home to many businesses investing in processing and is also a large consumer market that promotes the brand to international friends, affirming the national ginseng brand of Vietnam," Mr. Hoan emphasized.

Earlier that afternoon, as part of the festival, a seminar was also held on issues related to ginseng, spices, and medicinal herbs.

Businesses and experts collaborated to propose solutions for developing the ginseng, flavoring, and medicinal herb industries in Vietnam.

The workshop proposed solutions to help realize the Vietnamese government's policy of developing the ginseng, spice, and medicinal herb industries in Vietnam.

Vietnam has over 7,500 hectares of ginseng cultivation, mainly concentrated in the provinces of Quang Nam, Kon Tum, Gia Lai, etc. Among these, there are 8 key medicinal plant growing regions of Vietnam according to the Government's plan, including: Northwest, Northeast, Red River Delta, North Central, South Central Coast, Central Highlands, Southeast, and Southwest.

Here are some photos from the opening ceremony of the Ho Chi Minh City International Ginseng, Spices, and Medicinal Herbs Festival 2024: