TRA VINH Tra Vinh aims to have 6,000 hectares of coconut trees with international organic certification by 2025, in which the specialty wax coconut is given special attention to penetrate the Chinese market.
Wax coconut has been present in Tra Vinh for nearly a century, becoming the pride of the people here. Photo: Ho Thao .
Wax coconut opens the door to the billion-people market
Wax coconut has been present in Tra Vinh for nearly 100 years, but it was not until 2000 that it was officially widely known to the public, becoming a specialty fruit of Cau Ke district.
Up to now, the wax coconut area of the province has reached more than 1,270 hectares (accounting for 4.67% of the total coconut area of the province). Of which, 31 hectares are embryo-cultured wax coconuts, 70 hectares are grown according to VietGAP standards in an organic direction, applying the assisted pollination method. For normal wax coconuts, the wax yield rate is only 20 - 30%, while embryo-cultured wax coconuts have a wax yield rate of up to 75 - 80% of the total number of fruits/bunch, with an economic value 10 times higher than that of normal coconuts.
Although it brings high economic efficiency, Tra Vinh wax coconut is currently mainly sold fresh, businesses have not boldly participated in the production chain, in addition, the price is not stable. The source of wax coconut consumption of gardeners is mainly through small-scale local traders according to the market at each time, there is no consumption or long-term connection between gardeners and businesses.
Mr. Le Van Dong, Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Tra Vinh province, said that in the strategy to upgrade the coconut value chain in the period of 2022 - 2025, Tra Vinh is promoting trade promotion and market development through technology channels such as e-commerce platforms, Facebook, Zalo... to promote the province's typical products to international customers.
Wax coconuts bring much higher economic value than regular coconuts, each fruit currently costs from 100,000 to 150,000 VND. Photo: Ho Thao.
“This October, the province will receive a delegation from the Chinese Consulate General to promote trade for coconut and wax coconut products. The goal is to promote and introduce the province's OCOP products and boost the export of coconut and wax coconut to the billion-people market, while strengthening bilateral trade relations. In addition, the province will also introduce its potential and advantages to the Chinese Consulate General to call for investment, strengthen connections and cooperation with businesses and investors from China,” said Mr. Dong.
According to Mr. Dong, Tra Vinh wax coconut has been recognized as one of the 50 famous fruit specialties of Vietnam. Accordingly, on August 5, 2024, the Vietnam Coconut Association recognized wax coconut trees grown in Tra Vinh province as "Vietnamese coconut trees". The Department of Intellectual Property (Ministry of Science and Technology) also granted a certificate of geographical indication registration for the product "Tra Vinh wax coconut" as well as the certification mark "Tra Vinh wax coconut" and the geographical indication logo to establish intellectual property rights for Tra Vinh province's wax coconut products in the international market.
Currently, Tra Vinh province has more than 100 products made from wax coconut, of which 15 products are recognized as OCOP 3 stars or higher. Typically, Cam Hang wax coconut jam facility (group 2, Cau Ke town) has linked up with intermediaries to supply 2 enterprises in Ben Tre and Binh Duong provinces to export thousands of wax coconut products each year.
Hoa Tan Wax Coconut Cooperative (with 43 members, total wax coconut area of 32ha, of which the area certified by VietGAP is 25.2ha, products certified by OCOP 4 stars) cooperates with businesses and gardeners to supply about 2 million wax coconuts each year to the domestic and international markets, concentrated in Hanoi and the Central provinces. In 2023, the Cooperative also signed a supply contract with 2 businesses in Ben Tre and Ho Chi Minh City to significantly increase the amount of wax coconut consumed.
According to the schedule of receiving the Chinese Consulate General, the delegation will visit the production area of Cau Ke Wax Coconut Processing Company Limited (Vicosap). This is a young start-up enterprise in Cau Ke district, the pioneer and only unit in Vietnam specializing in processing a variety of products from Cau Ke wax coconut specialty ingredients.
Products made from wax coconut of Vicosap in Cau Ke district, Tra Vinh province are present in many major markets. Photo: Ho Thao.
Ms. Lam Ngoc Tu, Deputy Director of Vicosap said: “We not only focus on processing products from wax coconut but also pay special attention to the health of consumers. Therefore, we absolutely do not use colorants, chemicals, bleaching agents or preservatives in processing”.
Vicosap has implemented quality standards well and has been certified with ISO 9001:2015, ISO 22000:2018, HACCP, FDA and HALAL. Vicosap's wax coconut products have been recognized and highly appreciated by domestic and foreign customers. Currently, Vicosap's products have been exported to many major markets such as the US, Canada, UK, Japan, Taiwan and Hong Kong... Ms. Tu affirmed that the Company's products are qualified to conquer the Chinese market.
Striving to have 6,000 hectares of coconut trees achieving international organic certification
According to the leaders of Tra Vinh province, promoting the export of wax coconut to China opens up a great opportunity to realize the strategy of increasing the value of wax coconut in the province. With the motto of "taking people and businesses as the center, aiming at development for the benefit of people and businesses", Tra Vinh calls for effective cooperation with businesses, investors, international organizations as well as friends near and far.
Wax coconut is processed into more than 100 nutritious dishes, popular in the market. Photo: Ho Thao.
Mr. Le Van Han, Chairman of Tra Vinh Provincial People's Committee, said: The locality always welcomes domestic and foreign investors, committed to creating the most favorable conditions for them to successfully implement projects, thereby ensuring sustainable development for wax coconut trees in the future.
To ensure the raw material area, the province will expand 550 hectares of specialty wax coconut, at the same time plan the growing area, promote organic and VietGAP farming, and apply advanced seed technology to improve productivity and quality.
Tra Vinh Department of Cultivation and Plant Protection regularly organizes training courses on organic farming to ensure that coconut products produced meet domestic and export market demand.
Tra Vinh has issued policies to support organizations and individuals in applying wax coconut seed production technology, while implementing digital transformation to ensure transparent transactions. It encourages businesses to participate in the value chain and invest in deep processing to increase product value.
Assessing the opportunity for Tra Vinh wax coconut to reach the big sea, Mr. Cao Ba Dang Khoa - Vice President and General Secretary of Vietnam Coconut Association noted that it is necessary to create many layers of brand protection when entering the international market from coconut trunks, coconut varieties to coconut products. Not only must it be protected domestically, it must also be protected internationally to avoid commercial fraud like other crops.
Tra Vinh is focusing on switching to organic coconut production, including wax coconut trees. Photo: NNVN.
Mr. Khoa proposed that first, there should be national-level research, combined with prestigious universities nationwide to develop wax coconut into an exclusive brand. Then, the locality will apply the results of this research to build an action program and create opportunities for investors to participate in the development. Not only stopping at the existing wax coconut products, but also need to develop many other products to increase the value of this type of coconut.
To date, Tra Vinh has about 5,100 hectares of organic coconut. The organic coconut area is being planted by businesses and cooperatives and products are purchased at a price 10-15% higher than the market price. Currently, there are over 1,240 hectares of coconut that meet the requirements of plant quarantine for fresh coconuts exported to the Chinese market.
Tra Vinh province aims to have at least 8,000 hectares of coconut grown organically by 2025, of which 6,000 hectares will have achieved international organic certification.
Source: https://nongsanviet.nongnghiep.vn/dac-san-dua-sap-tra-vinh-san-xuat-huong-huu-co-huong-thi-truong-ty-dan-d402068.html
Comment (0)