Phu Tho (VNA) – 🐭The northern mountainous province of Phu Tho is pursuingthe policy of developing agriculture, with one of the priorities being buildingtrademarks for local farm specialities, some of which have long been known wideand far inside Vietnam.

A typical speciality of Phu Tho is Doan Hung pomelo, which earns its fameacross the country for unique aroma, juicy and freshly sweet vesicles and thinrind. The pomelo has been closely associated with the province’s image as Vietnam’sancestral land, where the legendary Hung Kings founded the first country inVietnam’s history. Two varieties of Doan Hung pomelo – the Suu Chi Dam and Bang Luan, havebeen recognised as national asset and granted geographical indication (GI). Doan Hung district lies at the gateway to Phu Tho province,150km north-west of Hanoi capital, bridging the North midland region and themountainous area. As of the end of 2018, Doan Hung pomelo was grown on about1,200 ha of land in Phu Tho. Besides the Doan Hung pomelo, other citrus varieties havebeen cultivated in the province, such as the Dien pomelo which originated inHanoi. Phu Tho now has nearly 4,000 ha of land under citrus trees, whichproduce more than 21,000 tonnes of fruit each year. Another local speciality of Phu Tho is roosters with ninespurs, which is mentioned in the myth “Son Tinh - Thuy Tinh” about theGod of the Mountain and the God of the Water. The nine-spur rooster was one ofthe three wedding presents demanded by the Hung King of the would-be groom ofPrincess My Nuong. The chickenspecies is indigenous to Tan Son district located deep inside the Xuan Son nationalpark. It is now raised at farms in Xuan Son, Xuan Dai, Kim Thuong, Dong Son andTan Son communes. Accordingto Vu Tien Bac, vice chairman of Tan Son district’s People’s Committee, thenine-spur chickens are raised semi-wild. Farmers only feed them in the morning,then release them to the forest. The chickens return to their pens bythemselves in the evening. Under this method, the chickens grow very slowly,reaching 1.2-1.6kg (for hens) and 2-2.2kg (roosters) after one year, and their meathas unique taste different from those raised in the normal way. Thechicken is much sought after as a gift on the occasion of the New Year because manybelieve it can bring luck. More than20 local agricultural products in Phu Tho have earned collective or individualtrademarks and GI certificates. The province also counts 42 products having localadvantages.    Phu Thohas selected 21 out of its 42 local specialities for development under the OneCommune One Product (OCOP) programme. Tran TuAnh, deputy director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and RuralDevelopment, said in order to promote local specialities with high commercialvalue, Phu Tho has made detailed plans for production and processing zones ofthose products, involved research establishments in transferring scientific andtechnological advances to farmers and enterprises in all links of theproduction chain, from variety selection and cross breeding, intensive farming,post-harvest preservation, process to assistance in production and buildingtrademarks of products. The provinceaims to create breakthroughs in the productivity and quality of farm products,thus developing production, enhancing economic value and income for farmers. Itplans to adopt mechanisms to encourage organisations and individuals to proposeinitiatives as well as scientific and technical solutions to increase productquality and value. Phu Tho will also intensify efforts in promoting localproducts in new markets. Apriority in the province’s plan of actions is to popularise the role of intellectualproperty (IP) in the production and trade of goods. It will help localproducers to establish IP rights for traditional products such as citrus andtea.-VNA