Efforts to bring "Vinh Lam Rice" to the market

In recent years, members of Dang Xa General Agricultural Service Cooperative (abbreviated as Dang Xa Cooperative), Vinh Lam Commune, Vinh Linh District have actively applied science and technology, complying with rice production processes according to VietGAP standards. Thanks to that, in August 2024, Dang Xa Cooperative launched the product "Vinh Lam Rice" to the market and was well received by consumers.

Although newly launched, the product "Vinh Lam Rice" has been well received by many consumers - Photo: MH

Vinh Lam commune has a fairly large rice production area in Vinh Linh district. Recently, many new rice varieties with good quality and adaptability to climate change such as: HN6, Thien Uu 8, Bac Huong 9, Dai Thom 8... have been put into mass cultivation. These rice varieties yield from 58-60 quintals/ha and have delicious rice quality.

However, because most of the production is done in the traditional way, although productivity and quality have increased, the economic value is not high. In addition, consumers are increasingly concerned about food safety, while the products are still not able to fully meet this requirement. Therefore, the rice grains of the homeland are only consumed in the village market, not yet attractive in the market.

Director of Dang Xa Cooperative Hoang Quang Lam said: “Concerned with this situation, the members of the Cooperative met to discuss and find a way to improve the quality of our hometown rice. We came up with the idea of ​​building a safe rice brand to bring to the market. To realize this, we dedicated 5 hectares out of the total 104 hectares of rice production area of ​​the Cooperative to cultivate rice according to VietGAP standards. At the same time, we learned about the processes of food safety testing, traceability... so that the products are guaranteed to comply with regulations.”

Starting from the 2023-2024 winter-spring crop, thanks to the support capital under Resolution No. 162 of the Provincial People's Council, on the planned area of ​​5 hectares, the Cooperative will put the HN6 rice variety into production. All cultivation stages are carried out synchronously by machinery. In order to ensure the productivity and quality of rice meet standards, the Cooperative coordinates with related units to guide participating households to strictly implement the standards from the diary recording stage to the process of fertilizing, caring for, and managing weeds and pests according to the growth process of the rice plant.

After harvest, the cooperative buys fresh rice in the field. Depending on the time, the price changes, but the price of VietGAP rice is always higher than that of traditionally produced rice by 1,000 - 1,500 VND/kg. In particular, the cooperative rents all machinery and equipment for harvesting to ensure product quality and subsequent processing. This has also brought many benefits to farmers when they do not have to spend time harvesting but can still sell the product at a high price. In the winter-spring crop of 2023 - 2024, the cooperative buys fresh rice at 7,500 VND/kg, while the price of traditionally produced rice is only 6,000 VND/kg.

The cooperative contracts with Quang Tri Trading Corporation to dry, mill and package the fresh rice for sale. In this process, the rice is dried to a moisture content of 13-13.5%, then cleaned to remove poor quality grains to ensure uniformity in size, density, color and moisture.

The quality of raw materials is checked by sensory method and moisture is controlled by hydrolysis meter. Raw materials after receiving and evaluating as meeting requirements are put into packaging.

Mr. Hoang Quang Lam added: “To have the brand name “Vinh Lam Rice”, we have to complete many procedures and documents as well as have full certifications on food safety and hygiene, certificates of traceability, growing area codes, certification of OCOP products... By August 2024, after having all these certifications, the cooperative will proceed with packaging, labeling, clearly stating the origin and source and bringing the product to the market”.

The finished product “Vinh Lam Rice” is packaged in nylon, PE, and sealed pineapple bags with a weight of 5 kg. On each product sold, the cooperative prints full stamps, date, month, year of production and expiration date. Although newly launched on the market, the product “Vinh Lam Rice” has been widely accepted by consumers.

As of December 2024, the cooperative sold nearly 6 tons of rice to the market, at a price of 25,000 VND/kg. Compared to the selling price of rice produced by traditional methods of only 17,000 VND/kg, rice produced according to VietGAP standards brings much higher profits, more importantly, ensuring the health of consumers and protecting the environment.

“Thus, the goal of building a brand for hometown rice of the cooperative members has been completed and initially brought back positive signals. However, in reality, there are still many difficulties in bringing “Vinh Lam Rice” further. Because currently, the search and expansion of consumption markets are still limited.

Therefore, the immediate solution is that the members of the cooperative commit to and maintain rice production and cultivation according to VietGAP standards to create stable input and ensure quality. Dang Xa Cooperative continues to be more bold in investing in partnerships to promote and introduce products. With the current demand for electronic shopping, setting up a website, Facebook... to promote Vinh Lam rice of the cooperative will create a convenient form of transaction for producers as well as customers.

With the financial support of the Provincial Rural Development Department, the Cooperative is building a processing factory with a capital of 640 million VND. This will create more favorable conditions for the "Vinh Lam Rice" brand to have a firm foothold in the market as expected...", Mr. Hoang Quang Lam confided.

My Hang

Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/no-luc-dua-gao-vinh-lam-ra-thi-truong-190847.htm