Green rice season on Bac Ha plateau

In the border land of Bac Ha, Lao Cai province, green rice flakes are not only an autumn gift, but also a story about the self-reliance and creativity of the Tay ethnic people.

From young rice grains, people have created products that both preserve cultural identity and bring economic value. In the context that the whole country is promoting the construction of new rural areas, developing agricultural economy associated with tourism, Bac Ha green rice can become a typical example of turning traditional products into high value-added products.

The ripe rice season "covers the Bac Ha plateau in gold".

Com - the quintessence of harvest on the white plateau

Every autumn, on the hillsides and valleys of Bac Ha, the scent of young sticky rice blends in the cold mist, opening the typical green rice season of the Tay ethnic group. Not only a culinary product with cultural value, Bac Ha green rice today is also becoming a commodity, contributing to creating livelihoods and increasing income for people in the border areas. From its traditional beauty, green rice has been affirming its position in the story of rural economic development associated with preserving national cultural identity.

For generations, Bac Ha green rice has been present in spiritual life, in festivals, in weddings, as a bond that binds the community. The elderly recall old stories, children cherish the first green rice grains of the season, all creating a lasting cultural cycle. For the Tay people in Bac Ha, green rice is not simply a dish, but the crystallization of heaven and earth, mountains and forests and the hands of labor. When the sticky rice grains are still milky and fragrant, the Tay people carefully select them to harvest, roast, pound, and sift, producing batches of green, fragrant, sweet green rice. Green rice grains wrapped in wild dong leaves and wild banana leaves seem to contain the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, symbolizing prosperity and abundance. But the value of green rice does not stop at cultural depth. In the highland border areas, where there are still many difficulties in livelihood, green rice grains have become a typical economic product, contributing to hunger eradication and poverty reduction and opening up new directions for development.

In Na Lo village, Bac Ha commune, there are more than 70 households, half of which make green rice flakes to supply to the market. Ms. Vang Thi Dinh, living in Na Lo village, said that the rice variety used to make green rice flakes in Na Lo is yellow sticky rice. This is a rice variety with round, sticky, and especially fragrant grains. According to the experience of the people, if you want delicious green rice flakes, you have to cut them at the right time. If the rice is too old, the green rice grains will no longer be green, hard and broken, while if the rice is too young, it will stick to the chaff, be mushy and will not be delicious. Normally, people go to the fields early in the morning to pick the rice. After harvesting, the whole family works together to make green rice flakes, each person doing a job. The first step is threshing the rice. After being harvested, the rice flowers will be threshed manually with a large bowl or ladle. Next, the newly threshed rice grains are put on a cast iron pan and roasted for about 10 minutes. The green rice flakes must be roasted evenly over low heat so that the green rice grains do not burn, do not dry out, and are evenly green. When the rice is roasted, the person making the green rice flakes pours it onto a tray, lets it cool, then rubs it to separate the husk. After rubbing, continue to sift to clean the green rice flakes. At this time, the fresh green rice flakes gradually appear. After having clean rice flakes, the person making the green rice flakes pound them. The pounding process must be careful and meticulous so that the rice flakes are green, smooth and sticky. The pounded rice flakes are then crushed to loosen them. At the end of the process, the women will wrap the green rice flakes in dong leaves to preserve the aroma, moisture and stickiness. People use the rice straw after threshing to both tie and decorate for aesthetics. The finished green rice flakes retain the green color and the inherent sticky aroma of sticky rice. Green rice flakes are not only a specialty, but also the embodiment of the Tay culture in the highlands of Bac Ha.

From traditional products to commodity products

Along with corn wine, tam hoa plum, and white horse, Bac Ha green rice is considered a “pillar specialty” when referring to this land. In recent years, the Tay ethnic people have gradually changed their production mindset. Instead of just making green rice to serve their families and communities, many households have proactively processed green rice into goods to sell at Bac Ha markets, tourist attractions, or supply to businesses.

Na Lo green rice - specialty of Bac Ha highlands.

According to statistics from Bac Ha commune, currently, in Ta Chai, Na Hoi, Ban Lien villages... there are hundreds of households participating in the production of green rice. During the season, Bac Ha market consumes hundreds of kilograms of fresh green rice every day. The selling price ranges from 120,000 to 150,000 VND/kg, bringing in a significant source of income. Some households earn tens of millions of VND per green rice crop, contributing to improving their lives. Not only stopping at fresh green rice, people have also processed many other products from green rice such as green rice cakes, green rice sticky rice, green rice tea, green rice wine... From purely agricultural products, green rice has become a tourist product, a typical gift product. This is an important step, linking traditional agricultural products with market demand.

Com Bac Ha has a special advantage because it combines many factors: cool highland climate, soil suitable for fragrant sticky rice, traditional processing experience and indispensable unique village cultural space. These conditions create a distinct flavor of com, completely different from that of the plains. In the context of developing community tourism and eco-tourism, com becomes a "bridge" between culture and economy. Tourists come to Bac Ha not only to see the flower valley, watch traditional horse racing, but also to enjoy the aroma of sticky com, and experience pounding com with the locals. Many homestays have integrated the experience of making com into their tours, creating more service value and at the same time promoting the brand of the product. This is the path to sustainable development: from agricultural production to tourism - service economy, from pure agricultural products to comprehensive cultural - economic products. Green rice therefore has a meaning that goes beyond the culinary framework, becoming the "cultural ambassador" of the Tay people of Bac Ha.

Despite the great potential, economic development from green rice still faces many challenges. Firstly, green rice production is mainly done by small households, lacking a standardized process. Preservation is still manual, the shelf life is short, not meeting the needs of a large market. Secondly, the brand "Bac Ha green rice" has not been registered for geographical indication protection, making it difficult for the product to expand outside the province. Thirdly, the connection between production - processing - consumption is still limited, mainly consumed locally, with no large enterprises participating. In addition, the source of specialty sticky rice is also at risk of being lost, when some rice fields are converted to crops. Lacking long-term planning and support policies, green rice production is at risk of remaining on a small scale, not yet able to exploit its great economic potential.

In order for green rice to truly become a “fishing rod” for the people of the Bac Ha highlands, there needs to be synchronous and long-term solutions. To do that, it requires the synchronous participation of local authorities, functional sectors, the business community and especially the consensus and efforts of the people. With the right development strategy, Bac Ha green rice will not only stop at the gift packages in the market, but can step into the large market, contributing to the sustainable development of the border economy.

Border Guard Newspaper

Source: https://baolaocai.vn/mua-com-tren-cao-nguyen-bac-ha-post881773.html