Making green rice cakes in Dong Thuan - main side job and income

(Baonghean.vn) - When the weather turns to autumn, the Dong Thuan green rice cake craft village (Nghi Trung commune, Nghi Loc) is bustling with production season. At its peak, the village's revenue reaches 700-750 million VND/month.

The craft of making green rice cakes has a long tradition in the locality and is still maintained and promoted effectively. Mr. Le Van Tai in Hamlet 21, Nghi Trung Commune, who has been in the profession for 15 years, said: “Green rice cakes are produced evenly throughout the year. However, the main crop is from October to May of the following year. At this time, on average, my family produces from 1 to 1.5 quintals of rice per day, equivalent to more than 10,000 green rice cakes to supply the market; earning a profit of about 700,000 VND per day.”

Mr. Le Tien Nang invested in popcorn production machine.

Most of the steps in making green rice cakes are done by hand. To make delicious, high-quality, even and beautiful cakes, the craftsmen must be meticulous in every step, from preparing the ingredients (sticky rice, molasses) to making popcorn, cooking molasses, stirring green rice, pouring molds, etc. The households in Dong Thuan village strive to diversify the designs of their products to suit the tastes.

Thanks to that, the market for Dong Thuan village's rice cake is increasingly expanding, to the mountainous districts of the province and neighboring provinces such as Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri... To meet market demand, more and more households have invested in rice popcorn making machines to support production. Mr. Le Tien Nang - a household in hamlet 21, Nghi Trung commune said: "Previously, my family had to hire someone to make rice popcorn, but this year, I invested more than 30 million VND to buy a popcorn making machine. Thanks to that, each day we can produce 5-7 quintals of rice. After deducting electricity and other expenses, my family earns about 500,000 VND".

Most of the stages of making green rice cakes in Dong Thuan village are done by hand. In which, cooking molasses is the most important stage in the process of making green rice cakes.

The advantage of making green rice cakes is that people can take advantage of their free time and take advantage of idle agricultural labor. From a side job, making green rice cakes has now become the main source of income for many households in Dong Thuan village. Currently, Dong Thuan village has 58/90 households making green rice cakes. This profession is creating jobs for over 150 workers with an income of 4 to 5 million VND/person/month.

In addition, the green rice cake making profession also creates jobs and increases income for some workers who do business from the profession. Ms. Hoang Thi Nga in Hamlet 20, who specializes in buying green rice cakes, said: "The quality of the cakes is delicious, so the green rice cakes in Dong Thuan craft village are very popular in the market. Every day, I take about 25 bags of green rice cakes to import to agents in Vinh City; earning a profit of over 200,000 VND. Thanks to this profession, I have a part-time job with a good income."

Making green rice cakes brings a good income to local people, from 4-5 million VND/month.

Every day, Dong Thuan green rice cake village produces about 500,000 green rice cakes, supplying the market in the province and some neighboring provinces.

Mr. Tran Hai Duong - Vice Chairman of Nghi Trung Commune People's Committee said: Dong Thuan green rice cake village was recognized as a craft village since 2012. In recent years, the commune has supported the craft village to build roads, creating convenience for people to travel and trade. The locality is also carrying out procedures to be certified to ensure food safety and hygiene to promote the Dong Thuan green rice cake brand more widely."

Thu Hien - Ngoc Mai

Nghi Loc Station