The Year of the Ox talks about unique buffalo markets

Dai Son Market

Australian MarketDai Son commune, Do Luong district, Nghe An province. This famous large buffalo and cow market in Southeast Asia meets every 6 months on the 1st, 6th, 11th, 16th, 21st, 26th of the lunar calendar. The market opens from 4am to around 8am. Goods come from places inside and outside the province as well as from Laos, Thailand, Myanmar...

Buffalo market (Dai Son commune, Do Luong, Nghe An).

U market has a separate area for buffaloes and cows. At the market, the buffaloes and cows are led by the hands of the sellers or tied to carts and electric poles in the market yard. The buyers walk around, choose the one they like and then bargain with the seller. The two sides set a price, agree on an agreement and pay right at the market.

After buying in large quantities, traders from distant provinces will load them onto trucks to transport to other provinces. People will continue to fatten the unsold animals to wait for the next trading session. Buffaloes and cows here are mainly bought to be slaughtered for meat. Depending on their size, fatness, thinness, youngness, oldness, etc., the price of buffaloes and cows ranges from several million to tens of millions of dong. The bustling buffalo and cow market has created conditions for people in Dai Son commune and surrounding communes to strongly develop the buffalo and cow fattening profession, bringing in high income.

BAC HA BUFFALO MARKET

The Bac Ha buffalo market (Lao Cai) is famous and is the largest buffalo market in the Northwest region. The market opens every Sunday morning and ends in the afternoon of the same day. The buffalo market takes place on a land area of ​​thousands of square meters, located right on the river bank, less than a kilometer from the center of Bac Ha town, Bac Ha district (Lao Cai). From early morning until the market closes, this land is always packed with buffaloes.

Bac Ha buffalo market (Lao Cai).

On the day of the market, people from all over the village flocked to the buffalo market to attend. Buyers and sellers created a bustling atmosphere throughout the area. Most of the people who brought buffaloes to the market to sell were villagers. There were households that lived dozens of kilometers away from the market and had to leave at 4 a.m., crossing many steep passes to make it to the market. Highlanders always consider "buffaloes as the capital of their business", so every family needs a buffalo for agricultural production. Therefore, the buffalo market is an important place for buying and selling for the people of Bac Ha highlands. Depending on the size, age, male or female of each buffalo, the price is different. Cheap buffaloes are also from 15 to 20 million VND, some expensive ones are up to 60 million VND. Among them, pink-skinned buffaloes are highly valuable.

CAN CAU BUFFALO MARKET

Can Cau market is a typical market of ethnic minorities (mainly Giay, Mong, Hoa) in the Northwest of Vietnam. The market is located along DT153 road - the only dirt road connecting Bac Ha town with the border town of Si Ma Cai, in Can Cau commune, Si Ma Cai district, Lao Cai province. The market is usually held on Saturdays, holidays and Tet, lasting from early morning until noon. This is also the second largest buffalo market in the Northwest of Vietnam with hundreds of buffaloes traded in each market session.

Can Cau buffalo market (Lao Cai province).

Can Cau is one of the rare markets that still retains the wild characteristics of the ethnic minorities in the highlands. The market is located in a space surrounded by terraced fields, layer upon layer, clinging to the hillsides, in the distance are the majestic and proud mountains of the Northwest. In addition to the buffaloes and cows traded, Can Cau market also sells vegetables, tubers, fruits, ornamental birds, herbs and typical dishes of the highlands... Because of this unique feature, it attracts tourists from many places in the country to visit and learn about the beautiful culture that has existed for a long time.

TRA LINH BUFFALO MARKET

Tra Linh market is located on DT211 road, in Hung Quoc town, Tra Linh district (Cao Bang). The market is held on the 4th, 9th, 14th, 19th, 24th and 29th of the lunar month. This is considered the largest buffalo and cow market in the North, with each market session consuming about 1,000 buffalo and cows of all kinds.

Tra Linh buffalo market (Ha Giang province).

The market starts from early morning until noon. It is not an exaggeration to say that the market is a unique "buffalo and cow trading floor" in the region. The market attracts many traders from other localities to buy for pulling power or for slaughter or to find good buffaloes to raise into fighting buffaloes. There are also many traders from across the border to buy buffaloes and cows. The market is also a place where people meet, learn experiences in buying and selling, choosing breeds, exchanging methods of raising and fattening buffaloes and cows, and consulting market prices.

A large male buffalo sells for 40 - 60 million VND, a calf for 15 - 20 million VND/head. A beautiful female buffalo (or one that is pregnant) costs 30 - 40 million VND/head. Not only do traders earn money after each market session, but many other jobs follow and bring in a significant income for local people such as motorbike taxi, money exchange, straw selling, pumping water to bathe buffaloes and cows, and even collecting buffalo and cow dung...