Areca spathe is an agricultural waste, however, Mr. Nguyen Van Tuyen (Quang Ngai) has "transformed" it into useful products such as bowls, plates... exported to Korea, Canada, Poland, the US... bringing in large revenue, creating stable jobs for local people and contributing to environmental protection.
Create new value for mo cau
In Nghia Hanh district, Quang Ngai province, just ask for "Tuyen mo cau" and everyone will know him because he is not only famous for the story of "transforming" areca leaves but also creates jobs for hundreds of elderly and disabled workers in his hometown.
Mr. Nguyen Van Tuyen, the person who "transforms" areca spathes into household products
Mr. Nguyen Van Tuyen (originally from Phu Yen) shared that he was passionate about environmentally friendly products, so after graduating from the University of Transport, he did not pursue this career but instead turned to purchasing, processing and exporting agricultural waste. Here, he and a group of friends established a company to collect corn cobs, bagasse, dried mango leaves, etc. and turned them all into export products to foreign markets to use as growing media for agricultural production.
Mr. Tuyen's areca spathe processing facility is creating jobs for many local people.
In 2019, by chance, stopping in Quang Ngai , Mr. Nguyen Van Tuyen was overwhelmed by the number of areca nuts in this land. At this time, people only harvested areca nuts to sell. As for the areca spathes that fell everywhere, they just considered them waste to burn or throw away. At that time, he searched online and accessed information about products made from areca spathes in India. Immediately, in his mind, he thought of turning the areca spathes here into useful items.
At the end of 2019, he started importing machinery from India to assemble and open a workshop to purchase areca spathe to make bowls, plates, food trays, etc. in Nghia Hanh district - one of the largest areca growing areas in Quang Ngai.
Unique eco-friendly household products made from areca spathe
After being collected, the areca spathe is scrubbed clean, soaked in water to soften, drained and put into a heat press mold to create shape. Depending on the customer's requirements, the facility manufactures different types of molds. Therefore, the pressed product will have a variety of shapes, and images can be printed on the product according to the customer's requirements.
According to Mr. Tuyen, these products are sturdy enough and waterproof, sterilized, packaged in heat-sealed nylon bags, can contain food, fruit, fish sauce, salt, spices... Besides, the price is cheap, only from 1,000 - 3,000 VND/piece and can be reused, so when using them, people can reduce the use of plastic bowls, plastic cups, and foam boxes, which are currently a problem for the environment.
Create stable jobs for people
In 2020, Mr. Tuyen brought his products to exhibitions at fairs to introduce the products. Very quickly, the unique products made from areca spathe created a buzz with many orders. The first order confirming the success of the areca spathe bowls and plates came from a major airline. This unit ordered thousands of products to serve passengers in business class.
Areca growers in Quang Ngai now have another job they never thought of before: collecting areca spathes to sell for money.
Success after success, export orders to the US, Canada, Poland, the Netherlands... were continuously signed. Therefore, the export volume accounts for 90%, helping the production facility earn hundreds of millions of VND in revenue each month, creating jobs for many local workers.
Currently, his production facility has 9 presses, each with 5 molds. On average, each month, the facility supplies the market with about 600,000 products of bowls, plates, trays... made of areca spathe, creating continuous jobs for 15 workers, with an income of 200,000 - 250,000 VND/day.
In addition to working at the areca spathe production workshop, areca growers in Quang Ngai also have another job that they have never thought of before, which is collecting areca spathes to sell for money. Each areca spathe is purchased by Mr. Nguyen Van Tuyen for 1,000 VND. It is estimated that 1 hectare of areca will have about 12,500 spathes/year. If Mr. Tuyen purchases areca spathes for 1,000 VND/piece, people will "pocket" 12.5 million VND/ha. This helps people have a decent source of income in addition to selling areca nuts.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Quy in Hanh Duc commune, Nghia Hanh district said that since the establishment of the areca spathe production workshop, people have had the additional job of collecting areca spathes to sell. Everyone is happy because they have an additional source of income to help them pay for their daily grocery shopping.
Areca palm markets in Nghia Hanh district (Quang Ngai)
Mr. Nguyen Van Tuyen shared: “Previously, the areca tree was only valuable for its fruit, now it is the areca spathe. As for the idea of increasing the value of all other parts of the areca tree, we will realize it, so that people can grow areca and harvest from the roots to the top.”
The leader of the People's Committee of Nghia Hanh district (Quang Ngai province) said that for a long time, areca spathe has brought almost no economic value. Now, thanks to the production facility of Mr. Nguyen Van Tuyen, people have more jobs and income. Products from areca spathe are quite unique, both safe for users and contributing to environmental protection. This is considered a new and promising direction in the locality.
Lan Anh
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