The man who built the Quy Chau Muscovy duck brand.

(Baonghean)Driven by his passion for the Quy duck breed (a breed considered the best-tasting in Vietnam by the National Institute of Animal Husbandry), Mr. Thai Dieu has traveled to every village in the two districts of Quy Chau and Que Phong to collect the remaining eggs from the people in order to revive this once-famous duck breed.

Mr. Thai Dieu's duck farm is nestled at the foot of Chau Tien hill (Chau Tien commune, Quy Chau district). On one side is a high mountain, on the other is the Hieu River. Anyone passing by is surprised by the farm's architecture, which blends seamlessly with the rocky terrain. And there, a once-famous duck breed is being cared for, bred, and preserved by him. Mr. Thai Dieu (born in 1957) is originally from Lien Thanh, Yen Thanh. After many visits to his wife's hometown in Que Phong, he became fascinated with the Quy duck breed. This is a traditional specialty duck breed of the Thai ethnic people living in the border communes of Quy Chau and Que Phong districts. Then, in 1993, he decided to move with his wife to Dan village, Tien Phong commune, Que Phong district to start a duck farming business. More than eight years have passed, but he has never regretted his decision.

His breeding ducks are always fully vaccinated.



Quy duck - currently the best-tasting duck in Vietnam.

Recounting the early days of bringing the duck breed to his farm, Mr. Dieu smiled: "At that time, Quy ducks were only raised sporadically by the people, with only a few at home, mainly for food, so there were no eggs to buy. My wife and I had to travel to every village, going from house to house, sometimes even to Laos. But even on the best days, we only got about 10 eggs. When we gathered enough eggs, I started incubating them. The first batch of eggs, despite having many years of experience in incubating eggs when I was in Yen Thanh, only hatched a few dozen chicks. After nearly two years of perseverance, I had almost 200 purebred ducks. This was the first batch of parent ducks I had successfully raised." At the same time, the People's Committee of Que Phong district had a policy to restore the Quy duck breed. The Resettlement and Land Allocation Board (now the Rural and Mountainous Development Board) of Que Phong district supported Mr. Dieu with 20 million VND to help him invest in expanding his farm and buying an incubator. From here, Mr. Dieu can provide the people with higher quality ducklings.

He led us on a tour of his farm while the workers were vaccinating the ducklings, which were only a few days old. He said, "Although this breed of duck has much higher resistance than other breeds, we still have to vaccinate them regularly. This batch of ducklings will be ready for sale as breeding stock in about two weeks." He reportedly sells about 10,000 purebred ducklings each month. Besides local households, many customers from neighboring districts such as Quy Chau, Quy Hop, Con Cuong, and Tuong Duong have heard about his ducklings and come to him to buy them. He explained that he is currently the only one who can successfully hatch eggs from this famous Quy Chau duck breed.

Mr. Thai Dieu's duck egg incubator.

I had heard about the Quy duck breed, but I still didn't understand why it was considered the best duck breed in Vietnam, as assessed by researchers from the National Institute of Animal Husbandry. Mr. Dieu smiled and explained: The Quy duck tastes better than other duck breeds because its meat is very lean, thick, chewy, and firm. Scientists have also analyzed that the meat of the Quy duck contains a superior proportion of glumatic acid (MSG) compared to other duck breeds. But the local people here explain it in their own way. They believe that the food source from seaweed, crabs, shrimp, and the harsh weather of the Phu Quy region are the special "inputs" that create the time-honored delicious taste of this duck breed.

What started as a hobby has eventually made Mr. Thai Dieu one of the most successful entrepreneurs in Que Phong district. From hatching eggs to selling ducklings, his farm earns nearly 700 million VND annually. Proof of his success is his purchase of a car worth over $9,000 in 2009. Beyond developing his own family's economy, Mr. Thai Dieu has also helped four other families by investing in ducklings and feed. The family of Mr. Nguyen Dinh Chin (Hamlet 2, Que Son Commune, Que Phong District) is one of the four families Mr. Dieu has assisted. Initially, they received 1,000 ducklings and feed. After more than four years of care, their average monthly income now exceeds 100 million VND.

In 2008, Mr. Dieu established Dieu Chau Private Enterprise, specializing in the production and supply of high-quality, purebred Quy ducklings. From there, Quy Chau and Que Phong districts signed numerous contracts with the enterprise to supply Quy ducklings to households under Program 135. In June 2011, Dieu Chau Private Enterprise signed an agreement to participate in the Quy duckling production and consumption model under the agricultural competitiveness project. According to the contract, Dieu Chau Enterprise is responsible for supplying ducklings to over 100 households in various communes of Que Phong district. To date, the first batch of ducklings is over 3 months old and promises to yield high economic returns. It is known that 90% of the model's members are ethnic minorities. This is truly a "cure" that gives many families the opportunity to develop their economy and increase their income.

Pham Bang