With only a few days left until Tet (Lunar New Year), artisans in craft villages are scrambling to make products like sticky rice cakes and other traditional cakes, jams, dried shrimp and others to supply to the market.

Tet is the time of peak demand for these products, with every family buying various kinds of cakes, jams and others to offer guests, wish hosts a happy new year or for themselves to enjoy together.

In Vinh Hoa village in the central Nghe An Province’s Yen Thanh District 210 families make sticky rice cakes, an item liked throughout the country.

Before Tet each of them increases production by 100-150kg of sticky rice compared to other times.

Bui Thi Nhung of the village said she has got five times more orders from Vinh city and its neighbouring districts than last year.

Nguyen Mao, chairman of the village’s Hop Thanh Co-operative, said local products are very diverse and not restricted to sticky rice cakes.

They are sold outside the province including in Ha Noi and HCM City, he said.

Artisans in many craft villages in Tra Vinh Province are busy. Nguyen Thi Diem, the owner of Tra Cuon sticky rice cake establishment in Cau Ngang District, said she has increased production from 7,000 cakes a day to 9,000 because of large orders.

Bui Van Chuong, head of the Tan Phat Loi Dried Shrimp Co-operative in Ca Mau Province’s Ngoc Hien District, told Sai Gon Giai Phong (Liberated Sai Gon) that orders for the co-operative’s Rach Goc Dried Shrimp are too large to meet.

It, therefore, gives priority to supplying regular customers, Chuong said.

Because demand for the product is high while supply is limited, prices have been increased by 20-30 per cent, he added.

In Dong Thap Province, the Lai Vung District People’s Committee said production of fermented pork roll at the Lai Vung village has been increased to meet the rising demand in markets in the region as well as Ha Noi and HCM City.

Price stabilisation

To ensure prices do not suddenly rise during Tet, many provinces have price-stabilisation programmes.

Tran Quoc Tuan, head of the Tra Vinh Province Department of Industry and Trade, said seven enterprises are taking part in a VND57 billion (US$2.5 million) price-stabilisation programme.

According to Can Tho city Department of Industry and Trade, supermarkets have plentiful stocks and stable prices.

Can Tho is the main retail market in the Mekong Delta, and so market management authorities are co-operating with relevant agencies to strengthen inspections to prevent fake goods and sudden price hikes.

Le Minh Duc, head of the Long An Province Department of Industry and Trade, said provinces in the region have signed an agreement with the HCM City Department of Industry and Trade to assist each other with goods supply during Tet.

If any province faces a shortage of any item during Tet, it would be helped out by other provinces, he said. —VNS