Thai boy with the idea of ​​restoring the craft of making yeast leaves from forest trees

Born and raised in Tam Thai commune, Tuong Duong district, Ha Huy Duc Thanh lived in a cultural space imbued with the ethnic identity of the Thai people in Western Nghe An. The poor mountain boy had cherished the dream of preserving and promoting the ethnic cultural identity since childhood. Since childhood, Thanh heard his grandparents tell him how the Thai people used leaves from the forest to make yeast to make wine.

Due to the impact of modern life, the tradition of making yeast from forest leaves is in danger of fading and being forgotten. In order to revive the yeast making craft and develop it into a craft village, helping the Thai ethnic people in the mountainous areas to escape poverty sustainably, Thanh came up with the idea of ​​researching how to make yeast from forest leaves and presented it to his Biology teacher for help. The teacher immediately agreed and supported him by assigning another student to accompany him to complete the research project.

Children explore leaf species in some localities in Nghe An province. Photo: QP

After nearly a year of researching documents and going to the field from Don Phuc commune, Mon Son district, Con Cuong district to Tam Hop commune, Tam Thai district, Tuong Duong district, the research team has found 14 types of leaves that can make wine yeast. Among them, there are groups of trees in the garden such as: sugarcane, jackfruit, betel... and the rest are leaves in the forest such as: cardamom, licorice, ginger, wild galangal, ginseng...

“The biggest difficulty in the process of finding raw materials is the problem of identifying leaf species. In fact, in the forests of districts such as Tuong Duong, Con Cuong, Ky Son, there are many different species of trees and leaves. Along with that, the distribution of tree species is also very complicated. Therefore, there are some leaf species that take us months to find,” Thanh added.

After collecting all kinds of leaves, the students contacted experienced elders to learn and collect methods and processes for processing leaves into yeast, the process of cooking rice, fermenting and making wine. After having a theoretical basis, the students carried out the process themselves in the school's laboratory.

“The students have overcome many difficulties and challenges to complete their work, not only with a passion for science but also with a deep love and pride in the precious cultural quintessence of their own people,” said instructor Luong Thi Ngoc Hoan.

It takes a lot of time and effort to invest in research projects. Photo: QP

When the wine product was released, the students were assisted by their instructor to send samples to the Digital Center 2, Da Nang City for testing. The results showed that the yeast index met the standards of TCVN 8275-2:2010, TCVN 8008-2009 and AOAC 972.07-2006.

With the impressive test results and high practicality of the project, the Science Council of Ethnic Minority High School 1 in Nghe An province decided to send the project of the two students to participate in the provincial Science and Technology competition for high school students and the excellent project won second prize.

Their research has received a lot of support and help from many people. Photo: QP

“This is a project of great significance in the project to preserve and promote the cultural identity of the Thai ethnic group in the mountainous region of Nghe An that is at risk of being lost. The project affirms the talent and passion for science of the Thai teachers and students. This is a project that is not only practical but also has profound educational value for the younger generations, especially students from ethnic minorities in the mountainous region,” added Mr. Phan Dinh Truong, Vice Principal of Ethnic Minority High School 1, Nghe An province.

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