Headquarters of Vietnamese ginseng opened in Kon Tum

The event received the attendance of Mr. Willem Schoustra, Agricultural Counselor of the Dutch Embassy in Vietnam; Mr. Vu Manh Hung, Vice Chairman of Vietnam Digital Agriculture Association (VIDA); Mr. Gabor Fluit, Vice President of the European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam (EuroCham); Mr. Johan Van Den Ban, Chairman of the Food, Agri and Aqua Business Sector Committee (FAASC - EuroCham) along with representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and Kon Tum province.

Vietnam Ginseng Investment Joint Stock Company (VNGI) owns the ginseng root garden of over 10 ha in the communes of Ngoc Lay (Tu Mo Rong district) and Muong Hoong (Dak Glei district) with a tissue-cultured seed research and development area of 1,700 m2 in Mang Den town.

VNGI has built a herbal material area of 37 ha - a place to care and develop precious medicinal herbs of Kon Tum such as jiaogulan, water clover, dong quai, codonopsis javanica, ampelopsis cantoniensis, elettaria cardamomum (true cardamom), ba ji tian, etc.

According to Mr. Nguyen Tuan Vu, VNGI General Director, established and developed right at the Ngoc Linh ginseng cultivation "holy land" in Kon Tum, the company now has the ability to create livelihoods for ethnic minorities in the Ngoc Linh mountain area, significantly improving their daily lives.

In order to meet the increasing demands of customers, VNGI is constantly researching and developing its products with the consultation of leading experts in the industry added with the production process that ensures food safety, making Vietnamese ginseng always of the best in terms of quality, bringing great experiences to users.

"VNGI wishes to develop the brand into a noteworthy Vietnamese product which can gain the acknowledgment and trust of international friends amid the international economic integration process," said Mr. Nguyen Tuan Vu.

Mr. Vu Manh Hung, Member of the Central Executive Committee of the Association of Young Vietnamese Entrepreneurs (AYVE), Vice Chairman of Vietnam Digital Agriculture Association (VIDA), Chairman of the Board of Directors of Hung Nhon Group said, “We are proud to be an associate member in the system of young Vietnamese entrepreneurs. From this pride we will persevere to maintain the connection with the most cohesive associations and businesses with the goal of mutual development. Hung Nhon Group is currently developing organic material areas in medicinal zones, which include ginseng.

"Ngoc Linh ginseng is truly wonderful", was the first comment of Mr. Willem Schoustra, Agricultural Counselor of the Dutch Embassy in Vietnam, when enjoying Ngoc Linh ginseng wine in Kon Tum.

“Ginseng is very precious indeed, but it requires very high techniques as well as suitable natural and climate conditions for it to grow well. In the European market, especially the Netherlands, we are also familiar with the taste of ginseng thanks to ginseng tea (mainly from South Korea). Therefore if Vietnamese businesses think of exporting Ngoc Linh ginseng to the EU, they need careful consideration in order to compete with the products from South Korea,” said Mr. Willem Schoustra.

Ngoc Linh ginseng is the 20^th type of ginseng found in the world. According to the research, Ngoc Linh ginseng contains 26 saponin compounds with known chemical structures and 26 saponins with new structures not found in other ginsengs. It can be affirmed that Ngoc Linh ginseng is one of the ginsengs with the highest saponin content, the best compared to other existing ginseng in the world at the moment.

Due to its endemicity and great economic value, being considered a “noble” herb having practical effects on human health, Ngoc Linh ginseng has now been identified as one of Kon Tum’s key products that need to be preserved and developed.