Deputy PM Vu Duc Dam (second, left) at the festival (Source: VNA) Hai Duong (VNA) – The first-ever Thanh Ha litchifestival opened in the northern province of Hai Duong on June 10 to promote thelocal specialty fruit.
The festival also aims toconnect farmers with supermarkets and trade centres, and processing and exportfirms nationwide.
Addressing the event, DeputyPrime Minister Vu Duc Dam said Vietnamese litchi has been put on shelves in manychoosy markets, stressing the need to pay more attention to applyingcutting-edge technologies and scientific and technological advances in caring,processing and preserving the fruit.
He also reminded Statemanagement agencies to help farmers promote the image and values of litchi.
Apart from litchi productionand trade promotion, Hai Duong province in general and Thanh Ha district inparticular should heed cultural and tourism development, especially ecologicaltourism, the official suggested.
Minister of Agriculture andRural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong said the festival offers an opportunity tohonour the local specialty fruit, farmers as well as Vietnam’sagriculture-based economy.
According to Nguyen Duong Thai,Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, ancient documents proved thatlitchi was grown in Thanh Ha about 200-300 years ago.
In 2018, Hai Duong has about10,500 ha of litchi, mostly in Thanh Ha district and Chi Linh town, which areexpected to yield about 60,000 tonnes. Of the total amount, some 1,000 tonnesis qualified for export to the US, Australia and the EU, he said.
Within the framework of thefestival, Deputy PM Dam and other delegates cut the ribbon to mark thedeparture of three containers of litchi to the processing zone of ABA Solutionand Trade JSC in Me Linh, Hanoi, to export to the US.
An array ofactivities will be held during the festival, including tours to the ancientlitchi tree in Thuy Lam village in Thanh Son commune, Thanh Ha district; visitsto VietGAP litchi gardens; and boat tours to litchi orchards along Huong river,among others. Visitors can also try their hand at picking litchi in gardens inThanh Ha district and Chi Linh town.
Hai Duong litchireceived the geographical indication from the Ministry of Science andTechnology’s National Office of Intellectual Property in 2007. The local fruitwas listed in the top 10 quality products in 2013 and 2014 and received theGold Brand prize in 2015.
The VietnamAssociation of Food Science and Technology granted a “trustful and safe foodbrand” certificate to Thanh Ha litchi in 2016. The same year, the ancientlitchi tree in Thuy Lam village was recognised as the oldest of its kind inVietnam.
Besides thedomestic market, Thanh Ha litchi has increased its presence outside thecountry. The fruit has been exported to Australia, Canada, China, France,Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Sweden, Thailand, the United ArabEmirates and the United States. -VNA
VNA
