Ca MauMr. Lam Quoc Nhut, 30 years old, turned the wasteland, was salted into a green material area to create salt and other types of products that are beneficial for health and make billions every year.
O Ro and Ro garden of Nhut in Phu Tan district is 10,000 m2, providing raw materials for vegetable salts and some functional foods. This is also a fulcrum for Nhut to develop the first brand in Vietnam specializing in developing saline agriculture to adapt climate change.
Having a passion for agriculture from childhood, so after graduating from mechanical engineering, Nhut continued to study planting and plant protection techniques in Ho Chi Minh City. During this time, he studied and studied growing salty trees such as Diep Bien, Sam Sam in Nha Be to make salt.
According to Nhut, unlike conventional salt, vegetable salts are extracted from natural fruits and vegetables, no preservatives. To get finished salt, the material will be prepared, then use pure water to extract natural minerals and then concentrate and crystallize into salt.
Salt from an olive tree with minerals beneficial to health made by Nhut. Image: An Minh
Vegetable salts are recommended by doctors due to lower sodium content than eaten salt and contain potassium, which helps balance blood pressure, reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease. In addition, this salt also has abundant magnesium, enhancing heart function, reducing the risk of myocardial infarction and stroke …
After graduation, Nhut did many jobs in Ho Chi Minh City to accumulate experience but still intended to plant and develop products from saline plants. In 2019, he and a Vietnamese -American friend implemented a completely new and strange project with the name “Planting watering with salt water”.
Nhut’s group goes around the coastal provinces to investigate and collect plants that can grow with high nutrition. Nhut detects more than 30 species of saline tolerance plants with growing medicinal properties. This project then won the first prize in the Mekong Delta Startup Contest in 2021 organized by VCCI and many other major awards.
With that platform, Nhut used capital for many years and money from prizes to build a brand specializing in the field of agriculture adapting to climate change. In June 2022, he invested nearly 3 billion VND to renovate 10,000 m2 of the family’s land in Phu Tan district to plant O Ro and Quao trees as raw materials.
Harvest olive tree in salt water to make salt, functional foods. Image: An Minh
In order to have scientific bases, ensure standard production process, safety for consumers, Nhut spends a large amount of money hiring experts to study the activity of these plants. “When I understand the characteristics and effectiveness of each type, I have enough grounds to advise customers,” Nhut said, it took him about 2 years for this process.
O Ro is a tree that is often found in coastal lands and tidal areas, capable of living in saline water. The olive tree has a 1-2 m high stem, the leaves are large and thick, the shape is like a ax with many sharp thorns next to it. According to the study, the olive leaf contains active ingredients with antibacterial and anti -inflammatory effects, helping to prevent infections and inflammation. In addition, plants also work to relieve pain and support the treatment of respiratory, digestive and cardiovascular diseases.
In 2023, Nhut harvested the first batch of olive, making vegetable salt. Drawing on the experience of salt from Sam Sam, the previous beach color is not beautiful, Nhut not only focuses on quality but also in color. The kilograms of salt made from olive are very beautiful white, not bitter aftertaste, containing iodine, vitamins and minerals, which are well received by customers.
“Compared to some other plants, making salt from olives for higher efficiency 3-4 times,” Nhut said, saying that the Rooma is a species with intense vitality, which can develop well for decades in salt water. 10 kg of fresh root umbrella will produce about 200 grams of salt. He sells salt for 150,000 VND per bag 250 grams.
Nhut intends to expand the material area to actively produce and supply to customers. Image: An Minh
Up to now, Nhut has spent hundreds of millions of dong to invest in modern machinery to produce vegetable salt and functional foods from olive tree; Satry juice; U Minh forest honey separates water, … After deducting expenses, every month he earns a profit of about 100 million VND. Some partners have proposed to bring saline -tolerant plant products distributed in Australia, Canada and the United States.
“Particularly for vegetable salt, I produce about 100 kg each month, profit of more than 25 million. The new factory is completing, expected to be able to increase the production of products 3 times,” Nhut said, saying that the salt was not enough to sell, so he intended to link local farmers to expand the material area.
Mr. Quach Van An, Deputy Director of Ca Mau Department of Science and Technology, said that the province has a large shrimp farming area, especially the form of raising the large shore area but has not been fully exploited. Therefore, the orientation of developing saline plants is very creative and has good potential to develop indigenous resources.
“Mr. Nhut’s products are also supported by the provincial authorities in promoting and connecting consumption markets, initially being actively received by customers,” An said.
Wish Ly