Developing sustainable value chain from lotus

Following the success of lotus products such as lotus tea, lotus root, lotus shoot, lotus seed, recently Ninh Thang Clean Agriculture Company Limited (Ninh Thang commune, Hoa Lu district) continues to perfect the lotus leaf tea production process. Thereby, contributing to creating more jobs and increasing income for local people.

In Dong Va area, Ninh Xuan commune, Hoa Lu district, at the end of May, from early morning, people prepared their tools (aluminum boats, boots, bags, tarpaulins...) to wade through the fields to harvest lotus leaves. While quickly picking, tying strings and neatly arranging bundles of lotus leaves on the boat, Mr. Nguyen Xuan Thanh excitedly told us: Previously, this area was ineffective for growing rice, so in the past 2 years, people have cooperated with the Company to plant lotus. At first, we only harvested lotus shoots, lotus seeds and lotus roots, but this year, we were instructed to pick more leaves to make tea. At 5,000 VND/1kg of fresh leaves, thanks to that, the family has a decent additional income.

Mrs. Le Thi Duc also boasted: My family has 3 sao of lotus, last year I earned 30 million, this year if I sell more leaves, I will definitely earn more. Not to mention, during the season I also harvest lotus for the Company, every day I earn an extra 300 - 400 thousand dong in wages.

Developing sustainable value chain from lotus — Farmers in Ninh Xuan commune, Hoa Lu harvest lotus leaves.

The lotus is a plant with both fragrance and color. For generations, this plant has been a part of the life and culture of the Vietnamese people. In particular, parts of the lotus plant have many health benefits and are commonly used in traditional medicine. Moreover, this is a fairly easy-going plant, with few pests and diseases, and does not require much care.

Based on these, in early 2022, Ninh Thang Clean Agriculture Company Limited (Ninh Thang Commune, Hoa Lu District) coordinated with the Vegetable and Fruit Research Institute to deploy a 2-hectare pilot planting model combined with the propagation of a number of new lotus varieties according to different directions of use such as lotus for flowers, lotus for tubers, lotus for shoots and lotus for seeds.

In particular, the Company has also cooperated with farmers in Hoa Lu district to convert 20 hectares of ineffective rice fields to lotus fields. Up to now, these lotus fields have grown and developed well and have produced very promising products. The Company has purchased and processed them, creating many different products such as: dried, fried, salted lotus roots; fresh lotus shoots, dried lotus pods, fresh lotus seeds, dried lotus seeds... In particular, the lotus-scented, vacuum-packed tea branded "Co Do Lotus Tea" has been ranked as a 4-star OCOP product.

Ms. Le Thu Huyen, Deputy Director of Ninh Thang Clean Agriculture Company Limited, said: In order to fully exploit the values of lotus, this year, the Company continues to test a new product, lotus leaf tea. Lotus leaves used to make tea are young, intact, pest-free leaves, picked early in the morning. They are then brought back to be washed and cut by machine according to size, then put into a jar, rolled into balls, and dried to the appropriate humidity.

Because lotus leaves are taken from lotus fields fertilized by natural methods, without using chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and no additives are added during the processing, the lotus leaf tea products of Ninh Thang Clean Agriculture Company Limited retain their original flavor, color, and health-beneficial substances. Although newly launched, the product has been received quite positively by the market.

Thus, lotus leaf tea products promise to contribute to increasing the value chain from lotus plants, increasing income, and creating more jobs for local people. In particular, growing lotus also creates a beautiful landscape space, thereby attracting more tourists to Ninh Binh.

Article, photos, videos: Nguyen Luu

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