People who "honor" the jellyfish of their homeland.

(Baonghean)Determined to become wealthy right in her homeland, Ms. Nguyen Thi Vinh from Tien Tien hamlet, Dien Kim commune, Dien Chau district, has pursued the jellyfish processing business, enriching her family while also sharing her business experience within the community.

Ms. Vinh is checking the jellyfish processing.

Born and raised in the coastal commune of Dien Kim, Ms. Nguyen Thi Vinh has worked in various professions such as processing fish sauce, shrimp paste, and trading fish. In 2000, she noticed that local fishermen were harvesting a lot of jellyfish and selling them very cheaply to Chinese traders, while processed jellyfish could be sold on the market for dozens of times the price of the "raw" version. After researching the market and learning processing techniques, Ms. Vinh discussed with her husband, Mr. Dinh Van Khanh, the idea of ​​opening the first jellyfish processing facility in Dien Chau district.

To ensure a reliable supply of raw materials and a closed-loop process from harvesting to processing, Ms. Vinh directly invested in local fishermen to build 80 new rafts, with an investment of 5 million VND per raft (half the value of each raft). Her family purchases all the jellyfish from fishermen in the coastal communes of Dien Chau, sometimes up to 150 tons during peak periods. Processing jellyfish is a relatively new profession for the people in the coastal area, so to ensure product quality, she hired two technical experts to provide on-site training on processing techniques and flavoring methods to transform the soft jellyfish into a crispy, uniquely flavored seafood delicacy. Ms. Vinh personally selects the raw materials, instructs workers to strictly adhere to technical procedures, and ensures food safety and hygiene, meeting the stringent criteria for export.

The jellyfish season in the Dien Chau sea area usually runs from November of the previous year to April of the following year. During this time, Ms. Vinh has to hire up to 50 seasonal workers and 15 regular workers every day to be able to buy all the jellyfish from the locals.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Huong's family has been selling jellyfish to Ms. Vinh's facility for 14 years. They said: "Our family used to be very poor, but Ms. Vinh supported us with capital to build a raft for catching jellyfish, and then she bought it at a fair and reasonable price. She buys everything we catch. For example, in March, our family sometimes harvested up to 2 tons of jellyfish a day, earning over 2 million VND." In addition, Ms. Vinh has established two more jellyfish purchasing and processing facilities in Ha Tinh and Quang Binh provinces to ensure a sufficient supply for her customers.

While seeking to export jellyfish abroad, Ms. Vinh is also actively searching for and expanding the domestic market to reduce risks. Thanks to guaranteed quality, the jellyfish processed by Khanh Vinh's facility are immediately ordered by customers. On average, the facility purchases 3,500 tons of jellyfish annually and processes 350 tons, achieving a revenue of 7 billion VND. When the jellyfish season ends, she also purchases 300 tons of various types of fish annually from Quynh Luu district and Thanh Hoa province for export to animal feed processing facilities. Mr. Khanh, Ms. Vinh's husband, is also proactively traveling to the South and North to find markets and open additional production facilities in various provinces.

Starting with Ms. Vinh, Dien Chau has now developed three more jellyfish purchasing and processing facilities, providing approximately 500 fishermen with tens of millions of dong in income each jellyfish harvesting season. Despite being busy with her business, Ms. Vinh always cares for her family and children. Her children are all well-behaved, diligent, and excellent students. Ms. Vinh also dedicates time to participating in the district's women's business club and actively supports charitable movements of the Women's Association at the commune and district levels. On average, her family donates 20 million dong to charity each year. With her dynamism, boldness, and determination to overcome poverty, she was invited by the Central Committee of the Vietnam Women's Union in 2009 to attend the conference "Exemplary Women in the Patriotic Emulation Movement."

Mai Giang

Dien Chau Radio and Television Station