Traders mysteriously buy yellow tea leaves
(Baonghean.vn) - In recent days, in Quy Chau district, there has been a situation where people go into the forest to pick yellow tea leaves to sell to traders.
Ms. Vi Thi Hoa, a wholesaler of yellow tea leaves in Chau Hanh commune, said: “Every day, I buy about 50-70kg of fresh leaves from people in Chau Thang, Chau Thuan, Chau Hanh communes... at a price of 30,000 VND/kg. After buying fresh leaves, I dry them, pack them into bags and sell them to some traders in Dien Chau district.
According to Ms. Hoa, this is the first time she has bought this type of leaf. After collecting enough quantity to order, the trader will send a truck to pick it up. “According to the buyer, they buy the yellow tea leaves to make medicine for some herbal medicine stores. But I don’t know what they are used to treat,” Ms. Hoa said.
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| Ms. Vi Thi Hoa in Ta Lanh village, Chau Hanh commune (Quy Chau) collects yellow tea leaves to dry and sell to traders. Photo: Be Vinh |
The yellow tea tree is a type of camellia, small tree, 2 - 5m high; it starts to sprout around April - May, starts to bloom in November and lasts until March of the following year. The yellow tea tree usually grows on hillsides and along streams in the mountainous districts of Quy Chau and Que Phong; it was not until 2012 that this plant was discovered and announced. According to scientific documents, yellow tea flowers contain more than 400 nutritional components with high medicinal value, especially effective in preventing cancer and reducing blood fat. |
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| When the plants bloom, traders buy the flowers at very high prices; fresh tea flowers cost 1.5 - 2.5 million VND/kg, while dried tea flowers cost from 3.5 - 4.5 million VND/kg. Photo: Be Vinh |
With the value of the yellow tea tree, in 2016, Quy Chau district coordinated with the Department of Science and Technology to build a model to develop this tree variety in Chau Hanh commune with an area of 2 hectares. In addition, households participating in the model also expanded to plant an additional 3 hectares, and currently the yellow tea tree is growing well.
Mr. Ha Van Khuong - Deputy Head of the Quy Chau District Agricultural Extension Station said: "According to the Resolution of the Quy Chau District Party Congress for the 2016 - 2020 term, yellow flower tea is a medicinal plant that needs to be developed and expanded in the coming time. The situation where people find yellow flower tea leaves to sell to traders can lead to the loss of genetic resources of this precious plant locally in Quy Chau District".
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| After the fresh leaves are dried, the traders will collect enough quantity.home purchasePhoto: Be Vinh |
When the flowering season of the yellow tea tree ends, people rush to find leaves to sell, which will affect the conservation and development of the yellow tea tree. To promptly prevent this phenomenon, it is necessary to step up propaganda and mobilize people not to go into the forest to collect leaves or cut down yellow tea trees to sell to traders./.
Baby Vinh
