The district has 50 households in mountainous areas with assets from 20 billion to 500 billion VND.

Sharing at a recent working session with the Vietnam Cooperative Alliance, Mr. Ho Quang Buu, Chairman of the People's Committee of Nam Tra My District (Quang Nam), said that compared to the world, Ngoc Linh ginseng is one of the five best ginsengs in the world (American ginseng, Russian ginseng, Canadian ginseng, Korean ginseng and Ngoc Linh ginseng). All of these countries have ginseng industries, but Vietnam's is still very small.

Mr. Buu said that the market consumes up to 2,000 billion VND of both ginseng roots and ginseng products each year. However, our ginseng is not at that level yet.

However, in 2015, with the Prime Minister's attention, he signed a decision approving Ngoc Linh ginseng as a national product, so he hopes that one day in the not too distant future, Vietnam will have a ginseng industry like other countries with precious ginseng in the world.

According to him, the Government currently has policies related to Ngoc Linh ginseng, and ministries and branches have very specific programs for developing Ngoc Linh ginseng. Localities have planned 15,000 hectares of ginseng, and there are specific policies and mechanisms for businesses and people to develop ginseng.

Specifically, in Quang Nam, there are currently 6 businesses investing in ginseng cultivation, and one corporation has registered to grow ginseng. In addition, there are over 1,200 households and a ginseng growing area of ​​about 2,300 hectares.

Ngoc Linh ginseng has great economic value. Mr. Buu cited that the current price of fresh Ngoc Linh ginseng ranges from 80-250 million VND/kg depending on the type. There are large Ngoc Linh ginseng roots with special prices for ginseng collectors. Accordingly, 1 hectare of ginseng can yield 70-75 billion VND after 5 years. Notably, the value of ginseng cultivation lies in the primary forest and is mostly planted by ethnic minorities in the mountains.

“Three years ago, the Prime Minister visited Nam Tra My district and asked me what I liked. I replied that I liked having many people become billionaires in Nam Tra My forest. Currently, the district has about 50 ethnic minority households with assets ranging from 20 billion to over 500 billion thanks to growing Ngoc Linh ginseng,” he revealed.

The district leader hopes that ministries and branches will conduct surveys to see how the ethnic minorities in the mountainous areas have changed thanks to Ngoc Linh ginseng.

However, he believes that this is just growing ginseng roots. If businesses jump into processing products such as cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, functional foods, etc. from ginseng, he thinks the value will be much higher for society and for people.

Another thing to mention is that ginseng grows under the forest canopy, and only when there is a forest can there be ginseng. Therefore, this is the best value in protecting the forest environment. When people grow ginseng, they never destroy the forest, they will protect the forest to protect ginseng.

Accordingly, he suggested that although the planning is for 15,000 hectares of ginseng cultivation, there are currently 5,600 hectares of ginseng cultivation area that people have to walk 2 and a half days to reach, so he suggested that the relevant agencies conduct a specific survey to open a small road, convenient for ginseng growers to travel.

He also suggested that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development make a relatively specific project on ginseng transplanting. According to him, our country has 122 districts in 28 provinces that can grow ginseng, and growing ginseng protects the forest. Therefore, if growing in 122 districts creates a large volume, the goods will be competitive with foreign countries. If only Nam Tra My grows it, it will only be enough to nourish a few people. He hopes to include ginseng tourism planning in national tourism. Ginseng security also needs attention because there are many fake ginsengs./.

Bao Phuong