Raising the scale of Ngoc Linh ginseng festival

Tourists looking to buy ginseng at Ngoc Linh ginseng market. Photo: ALANG NGUOC

According to Mr. Nguyen The Phuoc - Vice Chairman of Nam Tra My District People's Committee, with the theme "Ngoc Linh - forever proud", the 6th ginseng festival (taking place from August 1-3) attracted more than 10,000 visitors to visit, shop and participate in typical cultural activities, through the opening program, ginseng market, traditional pole performance, folk songs and dances...

“Especially the activity of taking visitors to tourist destinations to explore Ngoc Linh ginseng area, experience folk games, typical culture, and mountain cuisine with total revenue estimated at more than 7 billion VND” - Mr. Phuoc shared.

Mr. Nguyen Van Luong donated 3 ginseng plants that won first prize at the Ngoc Linh ginseng contest to help raise funds to eliminate temporary housing. Photo: AN

“Refreshing” the festival

Most clearly seen at this year's Ngoc Linh ginseng festival, in addition to the market space displaying more diverse medicinal products than previous years, the People's Committee of Nam Tra My district also "renewed" the festival by auctioning Ngoc Linh ginseng to raise funds to support the demolition of temporary houses for people in difficulty.

This meaningful activity immediately received positive response from ginseng growers, when 11 households, individuals, and businesses volunteered to donate prize-winning ginseng roots to the Organizing Committee for auction, raising more than 360 million VND to support the demolition of temporary houses at the call of Provincial Party Secretary Luong Nguyen Minh Triet.

Currently, Nam Tra My has planned a ginseng growing area of ​​over 15,000 hectares, conserving about 100 hectares, equivalent to about 2 million trees, and developing a ginseng material area of ​​over 1,650 hectares with more than 1,500 households participating in planting. At the same time, it has attracted 18 businesses to register to grow ginseng under the forest canopy, with an area of ​​over 341.75 hectares...

Tourists visit Ngoc Linh ginseng. Photo: ALANG NGUOC

As part of the festival's events, Nam Tra My arranges for groups of tourists and investors to visit prominent local tourist destinations, especially tours to explore Ngoc Linh ginseng, experience folk games, typical culture, and unique cuisine of the mountainous people...

Through practical experience, the wild beauty and strengths of the land known as the "capital of Ngoc Linh ginseng" are expected to catch the "green eyes" of tourists, creating opportunities to promote and introduce the unique potential of medicinal herbs, especially Ngoc Linh ginseng, to domestic and international friends.

Hamyang District Chief Jin Byung Young excitedly experienced the Ngoc Linh ginseng market. Photo: ALANG NGUOC

Although he has been to Nam Tra My many times, Mr. Jin Byung Young - Hamyang District Chief (Gyeongsangnam Province, Korea) and the Hamyang District Government delegation were still excited to witness the Ngoc Linh ginseng festival programs being held, imbued with the cultural colors of the highlands.

Therefore, during their stay in Nam Tra My, people witnessed the special group of guests from the "land of kimchi" always trying to blend into the festival atmosphere, going to each Ngoc Linh ginseng product display area to learn, admire and experience the flavor of mountain ginseng.

A variety of Ngoc Linh ginseng products are sold at the ginseng market. Photo: ALANG NGUOC

“We have known about Ngoc Linh ginseng for a long time, before the twinning with Nam Tra My district. Because this is a rare ginseng species, has medicinal properties and high saponin content, bringing major economic value to local people.

Through this festival, I think it will be an opportunity for Nam Tra My district to introduce and promote more widely the value and potential of Ngoc Linh ginseng to domestic and international investors and tourists" - Mr. Jin Byung Young shared.

Scale up to your level

From the results achieved through the organization of Ngoc Linh ginseng festival, especially the economic value after the effort to promote the product "hidden medicinal plant", Nam Tra My is gradually building a brand of a unique festival, full of indigenous cultural identity.

Xe Dang people reenact the ritual of worshiping the ginseng god. Photo: ALANG NGUOC

Chairman of Nam Tra My District People's Committee - Tran Duy Dung said, in Nam Tra My mountain area, Ngoc Linh ginseng has existed for a long time, becoming a particularly rare medicinal plant, bringing high economic value, considered as "green gold" of the great forest.

In June 2017, Ngoc Linh ginseng was recognized as a national product and was included by the National Assembly as a key crop in the framework of the National Target Program for socio-economic development in ethnic minority and mountainous areas.

According to Mr. Dung, the festival aims to promote and introduce Ngoc Linh ginseng, making this ginseng a branded medicinal plant with high economic value, comparable to other ginsengs in the world such as Korean ginseng, American ginseng, Russian ginseng, Canadian ginseng...

Ngoc Linh ginseng sold at the festival is guaranteed by Nam Tra My authorities to be real and of high quality. Photo: ALANG NGUOC

“This festival takes place with many activities, creating opportunities to promote tourism and attract investment for the medicinal herbs and clean agriculture industry of Nam Tra My in particular and Quang Nam in general, demonstrating innovation in thinking and working methods in brand building, especially national product brands,” said Mr. Dung.

Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Ho Quang Buu said that in order for Ngoc Linh ginseng to be worthy of its status as a national product, in addition to focusing on promoting propaganda and advocacy for the conservation and development of the original Ngoc Linh ginseng variety, people need to participate in detecting, denouncing, and fighting against fraudulent acts and illegal profiteering in breeding, planting, and trading poor quality ginseng of unknown origin.

Enterprises are promoting production and deep processing of products from Ngoc Linh ginseng, contributing to increasing the value of this precious medicinal plant.

The festival aims to honor the value of ginseng and Ngoc Linh ginseng growers. Photo: ALANG NGUOC

“It is necessary to seek support from ministries, branches at the central level, scientists, researchers, domestic and foreign enterprises so that Ngoc Linh ginseng can develop rapidly in quantity, ensure quality, reach out to the world, and be worthy of being a national product.

In the immediate future, we will focus on researching to find the cause as well as measures to prevent diseases that harm Ngoc Linh ginseng. In the coming time, we will focus on raising the Ngoc Linh ginseng festival to the national and international level" - Mr. Ho Quang Buu emphasized.

Source: https://baoquangnam.vn/nang-tam-quy-mo-le-hoi-sam-ngoc-linh-3139043.html