Note regarding the labeling of Vinh oranges to enhance their value.

It can be seen that, due to the influence of hot weather, heavy rain, and pests and diseases affecting the orange trees, the oranges of Nghe An this year are of poor quality.excessive hair lossAccording to orange growers in the districts of Quy Hop, Con Cuong, Tan Ky, Thanh Chuong, etc., never before have so many oranges fallen off the trees as this year. Furthermore, the quality of the oranges is also worse. Therefore, in some areas, even though the orange harvest season is not yet over, the orchards have already lost all their fruit.

Tan Ky District is a locality located in the region onlyVinh orange geographical indicationAs in previous years, orange growers here usually harvest until the 12th lunar month, but this year, it's only October, and the orange orchards have already been almost completely harvested.

Mr. Nguyen Cong Trung, Head of the Agriculture and Rural Development Department of Tan Ky district, said: This year, Tan Ky's oranges were affected by two factors: forest moths sucking sap and heavy rain, causing damage to the fruit and forcing orange growers to sell quickly. Therefore, by mid-November, most of the orange orchards in the district had finished bearing fruit. Only two households with about 6 hectares in Tan Phu commune managed to keep their oranges to affix traceability labels and participate in the OCOP product program. By early December, both households began harvesting their oranges and affixing Vinh orange traceability labels. Thus, this year, the quantity...traceability label for Vinh orangesThere are very few orange orchards in Tan Ky district, while in the entire district there are 67 hectares of oranges that have been officially recognized by the authorities as Vinh oranges with geographical indication.

Oranges falling off the tree during harvest season causes significant losses for orange growers. Photo: Xuan Hoang

Mr. Le Viet Minh, the company director, stated: The reason why fewer units registered to print traceability labels for Vinh oranges this year is due to the poor quality of the oranges. This is because the orange trees were infected with pests and diseases, and the weather was very sunny with heavy rain, causing a large number of oranges to fall off the trees.
According to the Nghe An Provincial Department of Standards, Metrology, and Quality, in October and November of this year, 10 companies, cooperatives, and households growing oranges in the province registered to print nearly 33,000 traceability labels to affix to Vinh oranges. In contrast, during the same period of October and November in 2019, orange producers and businesses in the province registered to print nearly 126,000 traceability labels for Vinh oranges. Thus, the number of traceability labels for Vinh oranges this year has decreased significantly compared to the 2019 orange season. Looking at the statistics from the Provincial Department of Standards, Metrology, and Quality, some well-known orange producers and businesses in Quy Hop district did not register to print traceability labels for Vinh oranges in October and November.

Attaching traceability labels enhances the value of Vinh oranges. Photo: Xuan Hoang

The purpose of affixing traceability labels to Vinh oranges is to introduce and promote Vinh oranges from Nghe An province, while also increasing their value. Therefore, orange growers need to affix traceability labels to Vinh oranges if their orchards meet the requirements. Given the current situation where the number of traceability labels for Vinh oranges has decreased sharply in recent months compared to the same period last year, the Department of Science and Technology will conduct a survey to assess the actual situation in the orange-growing areas that have been certified with the Vinh orange geographical indication.

Mr. Nguyen Viet Hung - Deputy Director of the Department of Science and Technology

According to Mr. Nguyen Viet Hung's assessment, this year's heavy rains and floods may have caused premature orange drop, or the oranges may have ripened late, resulting in farmers only harvesting a large quantity in December. According to Decision No. 65/2017/QD-UBND of the Provincial People's Committee, organizations and individuals producing oranges who are granted the right to use the geographical indication "Vinh" are issued traceability labels bearing the geographical indication "Vinh oranges".

The traceability code is issued separately for each organization or individual producing oranges within the geographical indication area. The validity period of the traceability code is calculated from the start of orange harvesting until the product's expiration date.

From the beginning of November, orange growers in Nghe An province began the main harvest season for Vinh oranges. Photo: Quang An

The traceability label bearing the geographical indication "Vinh" for oranges is standardized to use a single type in terms of design, image, material, size, information, and technological solution, and must be affixed to each orange and packaging containing oranges bearing the geographical indication "Vinh". Each orange and packaging containing oranges bearing the geographical indication "Vinh" may only have one traceability label affixed, and its validity must be ensured (within the product's shelf life).

Organizations and individuals are prohibited from transferring, exchanging, buying, selling, erasing, or altering the information specified on the logo and traceability stamp of oranges bearing the geographical indication "Vinh"; the traceability stamp for Vinh oranges must uniformly use the protected "Vinh orange" logo on commercial packaging and business signs.