| Vietnamese agarwood can be the top in Southeast Asia. Agarwood Industry Development Cooperation Festival in Khanh Hoa |
Buyers easily encounter "fake" agarwood
According to Mr. Bien Quoc Dung, natural agarwood is currently scarce due to the shrinking area of natural forests. In our country, there is still no center for agarwood quality inspection, so real and fake agarwood products on the market are mixed and difficult to control.
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| Mr. Bien Quoc Dung, Chairman of Khanh Hoa Agarwood Association, shared at the Agarwood Festival on April 10, with more than 150 agarwood enterprises nationwide and many foreign partners. Photo: Duc Thao |
Mr. Dung said that the raw materials to make agarwood products today are mainly natural agarwood and artificial agarwood. However, natural agarwood is very precious, rare, and expensive, so very few establishments make products from this type of agarwood.
Currently, the main product is made from artificial agarwood, which is agarwood grown and implanted from agarwood trees. It takes up to 15 years to produce the finished product, but not all trees after implantation produce agarwood, so artificial agarwood is also very precious and quite expensive.
The Chairman of Khanh Hoa Agarwood Association shared that currently, no competent authority or organization has regulations on standards for classifying and evaluating agarwood quality, all of which are self-announced by enterprises. In the market, the price of agarwood incense products ranges from several hundred thousand dong to tens of millions of dong "depending on quality and type" , and the price of agarwood bracelets also ranges from several million dong to hundreds of millions of dong.
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| Some handicraft products from agarwood. Photo: Duc Thao |
"Currently, there are no specific regulations on the quality standards of these products. Natural agarwood bracelets advertised at cheap prices are very likely to be fake," said Mr. Dung. Some agarwood selling establishments advertise "ky nam bracelets" for only a few tens of millions of dong, which is completely unreasonable.
Mr. Dung informed that natural or artificial agarwood gives off a mild fragrance, which is pleasant to smell; burning it directly will give off a white smoke that quickly evaporates and then dissipates, and smelling it will give off a faint fragrance. Fake agarwood has a shiny black color, and a very strong scent due to the effects of chemicals. When burned, a lot of smoke and a burning smell rush straight to the nose, causing discomfort.
Need a quality control center
Mr. Bien Quoc Dung said that in agarwood trading, classification is largely based on the seller's feelings, experience, and reputation.
"Khanh Hoa is considered the capital of agarwood, with its unique quality and aroma. Over the years, local craftsmen have always strived to promote the quintessential products of the agarwood land. The flooding of poor quality products on the market has greatly affected the reputation and brand of the province," Mr. Dung emphasized.
To tighten the quality of agarwood in the market, protect buyers and reputable establishments and businesses, Khanh Hoa Agarwood Association is coordinating with Vietnam Agarwood Association and relevant agencies to establish a Center for Agarwood Quality Inspection, serving nationwide.
"Every citizen and business needs to verify the quality of agarwood, and can bring it to the Center for inspection and discussion," Mr. Dung hopes that the establishment of the Center will be the basis for evaluating and managing agarwood products well, protecting and promoting the reputation of the agarwood brand not only in Khanh Hoa but also in the whole country.
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