From vegetable gardens, lotus ponds to popular OCOP products

Products made from lotus root of Mrs. Huynh Thi Thanh Van's family, Long Tan commune.

Deep processing helps increase the value of agricultural products

Previously, Ms. Huynh Thi Thanh Van’s family (Long Tan commune) grew organic lotus, mainly exploiting seeds, tubers and fresh lotus shoots. Although the yield was quite good, the value was not high. Realizing this limitation, Ms. Van started researching and applying techniques to deeply process into products such as lotus root tea, lotus root starch, lotus heart tea, lotus leaf tea, lotus flowers soaked in tea... to meet the diverse needs of the market.

Among these products, lotus root tea and lotus root starch are two products that require strict production techniques. Ms. Van said: “Currently, my lotus products are consumed in many markets in the province, the region and the Australian market. In the coming time, I will focus on deep processing to expand the market.”

If Ms. Huynh Thi Thanh Van's lotus product production model originated from the desire to increase the value of crops to bring to the market, then Ms. Nguyen Thi My, owner of Thao Nguyen vegetable powder facility in Phuoc Hung commune, started from personal needs.

Realizing that homemade vegetable powder products are good for family use, Ms. My thought of developing them into business products. In 2020, taking advantage of the abundant green vegetable resources in the locality, she decided to invest in building a factory and installing cold drying equipment to process powders of pennywort, celery, fish mint, perilla... in a safe, convenient and market-appropriate manner.

Freeze-drying technology combined with deep cleaning helps the product achieve a moisture content of less than 5%, preserving its medicinal properties and extending its shelf life compared to traditional methods. Currently, the facility's products have been recognized as 3-star OCOP products.

Processing pennywort powder at Thao Nguyen vegetable powder production facility, Phuoc Hung commune, Long Dat district.

Ms. My shared: “From fresh agricultural products, low value, unstable output, through deep processing machines, the product value increases and is better preserved. The post-processed products have increased value, have a foothold in the market and have much higher value than producing and selling raw products”.

Continued support for quality improvement

Currently, Long Dat district has 59 OCOP products, of which 27 products have achieved 4 stars and 32 products have achieved 3 stars. In order to increase the value of these products, the district has gradually built support policies and implemented synchronous solutions to improve product quality. At the same time, the district has promoted propaganda, organized training on technology application, and shared experiences in agricultural production and processing for production establishments. These activities contribute to shifting the labor structure and promoting rural economic development.

Mr. Hong Nhu Vang, Vice Chairman of Long Dat District People's Committee, said that to support key products and connect to the market, the district focuses on supporting from the input stage, guiding farmers in applying farming techniques and ensuring clean production processes according to domestic and international standards. On that basis, the district continues to support processing and preservation techniques, while building product designs, brands and packaging.

“The district continues to orient and advise OCOP entities to upgrade and improve products towards quality standardization; manage and monitor quality standards; support brand building, trade promotion, and product advertising. Thereby, contributing to enhancing the value of OCOP products of the district,” Mr. Hong Nhu Vang added.

Article and photos: DONG HIEU

Source: https://baobariavungtau.com.vn/kinh-te/202505/tu-vuon-rau-dam-sen-den-san-pham-ocop-duoc-ua-chuong-1043284/