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A tofu skin production facility is fulfilling its orders for the upcoming Tet holiday. (Photo: SGGP) |
The 2023 Lunar New Year (Tet holiday) is over one month away, yet rice paper producers in Thanh Hung Commune (Giong Rieng District in Kien Giang Province) have worked at their full capacity to timely process wholesale orders coming from other provinces of An Giang, Ca Mau, Bac Lieu.
In the island district of Kien Hai in Kien Giang Province, many dried seafood processing facilities are busy fulfilling their large-volume orders for the upcoming Tet holiday. Besides traditional products, this year they introduce dried boneless Old-World silverside with salt and pepper, half-dried lizardfish and croaker fish.
It is forecast that prices of dried seafood this year will see a slight rise due to an increase in the input and wage. In particular, premium dried squids are at VND1.2 million (US$51) a kilo, dried shrimp at VND1.5 million ($64) a kilo.
Sharing the same busy state is Phu Tho dried fish village in Tam Nong District of Dong Thap Province. Nguyen Thi Tuyet Linh, owner of a dried fish processing facility shared that early in the morning, her employees begin their work to process 200-300 kilos of fresh fish a day, which is merely enough to fulfill their Tet-holiday orders. Her village is expected to produce 45 tonnes of dried fish this Lunar New Year.
In Vinh Long Province, Dinh Cong Hoang tofu skin production facility has just hired more laborers to process its wholesale orders for the upcoming Tet. The owner proudly shared that with a history of more than 70 year, his facility is quite famous for its high-quality tofu skin to use in both regular and vegetarian dishes.
Dried bronze featherback fish is the specialty of Hau Giang Province. The price for fresh fish is now at VND150,000 ($6.4) a kilo, twice as high as that of last year. Fish processing units in various cooperatives in this province are eagerly producing boneless fish packs, fish patties, fish balls, prawn and fish crackers for the domestic market.
Phu My Town of Phu Tan District in An Giang Province is famous for its sticky-rice paper for more than 70 years. Many tourists, national and international alike, have bought sticky-rice paper here as souvenir for their relatives and friends. Another renowned specialty of An Giang Province is fermented fish paste in Chau Doc City.
The brand name ‘Ong Cua’ ST25 rice has long been associated with Soc Trang Province. However, its relative variety – Nang Thom Cho Dao rice from My Le Commune of Can Duoc District in Long An Province – has gradually been well-known to consumers nationwide. Phan Van Sanh, a wholesaler of this rice variety in Long An Province, shared a forecast of a double in the sales of this variety next year. He, therefore, has put orders with farmers over hundreds of acres of rice paddies, with an expected yield of hundreds of tonnes. This rice will then be packed in sacks ready for sale.
Bay Khiem, owner of a mandarin orange orchard in Lai Vung District of Dong Thap Province, said that he has prepared about 300 pots for this Lunar New Year. They are sold at an average price of VND2-7 million a pot ($85-296) depending on their height. Most pots in his orchard have been deposited by buyers from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City and will be taken away in December of this Lunar year.
Owner of Tu Trinh dried seafood production facility (in Phu Tho Commune) said that to ensure food hygiene and safety, she has invested in new drying ovens and vacuum machines for the food processing and packaging stages.
Dam Minh Thien, Vice Chairman of the Prosperous Farmer Society in Tam Nong District, stressed that dried seafood processing facilities are very strict in selecting the input for their products for the sake of their long-lasting reputation.
