Luc Ngan: Boosting lychee processing

BAC GIANG - In parallel with measures to promote the consumption of fresh lychees to domestic and international markets, this year, Luc Ngan district continues to focus on processing products from lychees, helping to increase value and income, and reduce pressure during the harvest season.

These days, in addition to actively harvesting fresh lychees, lychee drying facilities in Luc Ngan district are also increasing their operating capacity. Accordingly, with over 10,300 hectares of lychee orchards, the total production in the district is expected to reach approximately 60,500 tons. This year, Luc Ngan district has determined that the main form of consumption will be selling fresh fruit (accounting for about 80%), with the remainder being processed locally and sold to domestic processing facilities for drying, canning, juicing, and making candied fruit. Through deep processing, the value of lychees is significantly increased, providing lychee growers with better incomes and reducing seasonal pressures.

Lychee processing line of Toan Cau Food Import-Export Joint Stock Company.

Currently, the entire district has more than 1,000 various types of fabric drying ovens, meeting the processing needs of over 6,000 tons. The majority of these ovens are concentrated in the communes of Tan Lap, Phu Nhuan, Tan Quang, Deo Gia, Giap Son, and Bien Dong town… Some families and cooperatives have boldly invested in high-tech cold drying and steam drying machines, increasing the quality and value of their products, such as: Phi Dien Agricultural Service Cooperative; Luc Ngan Xanh Cooperative; Bang Thuy Agricultural Cooperative…

Tan Lap commune has three lychee drying kilns, and since mid-June, they have been operating. From the beginning of the season until now, Mr. Hoang Van Coong's family in Trai Thap village has dried nearly 20 tons of lychees. To obtain raw materials, in addition to the lychees brought directly to the kilns by local people, his family also uses trucks to collect lychees from neighboring areas. With many years of experience in drying lychees, Mr. Coong shared: "High-quality dried lychees should have a light aroma, fragrant and chewy flesh, a distinctly sweet taste, and should not be sticky to the touch. The taste should be mild and refreshing. This year, the supply of raw lychees is quite abundant and of good quality, so I expect to dry about 200 tons of fresh lychees. On average, each batch dries 6 tons, with a batch coming out every 4 days. If the market shows signs of improvement, my family will hire more workers to increase the drying capacity."

According to Mr. Phan Van Net, Director of the Phi Dien Agricultural Production, Trade and Service Cooperative in Phi residential area, Phi Dien town, since the beginning of the season, the Cooperative has dried more than 10 tons of fresh lychees using electric oven drying technology. It is expected that the entire season will see the drying of approximately 300 tons of fresh lychees, yielding over 80 tons of dried lychees. Currently, the Cooperative has received several orders for dried lychees from export buyers to Europe and America. The product is packaged according to standards, has traceability, is convenient, elegant, easy to transport, and can be used as a gift.

Besides serving the domestic market, in recent years, Luc Ngan dried lychees have also been exported to several markets such as China, South Korea, Australia, Japan, and Europe through agricultural export companies. This product line has a long shelf life, low transportation risks, and is increasingly popular in high-end markets. Many dried lychee production facilities have met international quality standards, invested in labels and packaging with QR codes for traceability, and have been recognized as OCOP products, helping the product access supermarkets, distributors, and online sales channels both domestically and internationally.

In Luc Ngan district, there are currently more than 1,000 various types of fabric drying kilns, meeting the processing needs of over 6,000 tons. The majority of these kilns are concentrated in the communes of Tan Lap, Phu Nhuan, Tan Quang, Deo Gia, Giap Son, and Bien Dong town…

Along with operating drying facilities, many businesses in the province are increasing their lychee purchases in Luc Ngan district and recruiting workers to process fresh lychee products. Specifically, Toan Cau Food Import-Export Joint Stock Company (Chu town) has planned to process approximately 5,000 tons of products such as canned lychees, frozen lychees, and lychee juice.

According to company representatives, the local supply of raw materials for processing lychees is quite abundant and of guaranteed quality. The company does not need to collect them from multiple locations; people bring them to the company daily for weighing. The company has proactively signed orders in advance, and investment in machinery and equipment has been increased, so the processing and consumption of lychee products are proceeding quite smoothly. Currently, all lychee processing lines are operating at full capacity, and the company has to continuously announce recruitment to meet delivery deadlines.

According to representatives from the Department of Economy , Infrastructure and Urban Development of Luc Ngan district, the focus is not limited to consuming fresh lychees. Due to the large yield this year, the local authorities have directed and encouraged people and businesses to increase processing activities into products such as dried lychees, juices, teas, beverages, cakes, and cold storage, helping to extend the shelf life and reduce consumption pressure. Several businesses, such as GOC Export Food Processing Joint Stock Company (Lang Giang), Vifoco Import-Export Joint Stock Company (Bac Giang city), and other fruit juice factories inside and outside the province, are also stepping up their lychee purchasing activities in the district.

Furthermore, many weighing stations and traders bring trucks directly to villages and hamlets to purchase lychees for processing plants and drying facilities in provinces and cities such as Thanh Hoa, Hanoi, Ha Nam, and Hung Yen. Notably, lychees continue to be processed into various products through cooperatives and businesses, enriching the local agricultural product range and promoting the development of tourism souvenirs. In Luc Ngan district, there are currently several products made from lychees, such as yogurt, wine, tea, cakes, cleaning products, and vinegar. This helps diversify products, increase value, and boost income for lychee growers.

Text and photos: Nguyen Huong

Source: https://baobacgiang.vn/luc-ngan-day-manh-che-bien-vai-thieu-postid420826.bbg