The freeze-dried durian product of Green Tropical Import-Export Processing Joint Stock Company (No. 108 Vo Thi Sau, Chu Se town) has opened a new direction for the province's fruits to access the international market with high value and stable quality.
Technology creates breakthrough for local fruit
As one of the pioneers pursuing deep processing in Gia Lai , Green Tropical Company has boldly invested in a modern freeze-drying technology line to increase the value of local fruits, especially durian.
Mr. Bui Duy Hai - Director of the Company - shared: The constant worry of farmers is the refrain "good harvest, low price, bad harvest, high price". The great dependence on the raw export market, combined with the adverse impact of weather, prices, and seasons, has always put farmers in a passive situation.
“I want to find a more fundamental and sustainable direction, both helping farmers stabilize their income and bringing Vietnamese products further into the international market,” Mr. Hai shared.
From there, Green Tropical was born with the goal of building a closed processing chain for fruits, creating convenient products with high added value and meeting export standards. In which, the main product is Tropi Durian freeze-dried durian.
Freeze-drying technology is an advanced method that helps preserve the shape, flavor and nutrition of food almost intact. This process begins by deep freezing durian segments at a temperature of minus 40 degrees Celsius, then transferring them to a vacuum environment so that the ice evaporates directly (sublimates) without going through the liquefaction stage.
The drying time lasts 30-40 hours, helping the finished product to be crispy, fragrant and have a moisture content of only 6-8%. In particular, this technology allows the product to be preserved for up to 12 months, without the need for preservatives, easy to transport long distances, and no need to worry about strict quarantine issues like fresh durian. Consumers also no longer face the risk of buying unripe, unripe or damaged fruit due to poor preservation.
Green Tropical spent 3 months testing many durian varieties such as Ri6, Thai, Musang King... before choosing the optimal formula. By February 2025, the Tropi Durian dried durian product officially achieved ISO, HACCP, FDA certifications and quality inspection by Avatek, qualified for export.
According to Mr. Hai, to produce 1 ton of dried durian, the factory needs to process about 4 tons of fresh fruit. The loss rate is high due to having to remove the shell and seeds and only selecting the standard pulp. However, the light weight after drying helps the product have a very high economic value.
“A truck of dried durian can be equivalent in value to nearly 20 trucks of fresh durian. This is a great advantage for export because it reduces transportation and preservation costs and limits quarantine risks,” Mr. Hai analyzed.
Currently, Green Tropical has solved the stable output for a large amount of local durian, at the same time creating jobs for nearly 20 regular workers with an average income of 8 million VND/month. This is a positive signal for the shift from raw production to deeper, more professional processing in rural areas of Gia Lai.
Building a closed processing ecosystem, aiming for export
Not stopping at dried durian products, Green Tropical is expanding its processing portfolio with many typical agricultural products such as green banana powder, dried soursop leaves, concentrated passion fruit juice... aiming to develop a diverse, healthy and safe agricultural value chain. The company also aims to develop high-quality consumer food lines such as confectionery, natural juices from fresh fruits instead of industrial products of unknown origin that are flooding the market.
“Consumers deserve to use clean, healthy products, and that is also a way for Vietnamese agricultural products to improve their position in the market,” Mr. Hai shared.
Notably, Green Tropical is building a closed production model: from linking the construction of raw material areas to processing and consumption. Specifically, the company has developed an organic coffee raw material area of more than 100 hectares, while coordinating with households and cooperatives to grow organic fruit trees such as durian and passion fruit.
The company is responsible for providing technical guidance and purchasing all post-harvest products for the processing line. Not only does this model help farmers increase their income, it also reduces seasonal risks and improves the consistent quality of input products - a key factor in export standards.
In addition, the merger of Gia Lai province with Binh Dinh province is creating high expectations for the business community in the region. From there, it will be easy to access the Quy Nhon seaport system and the logistics infrastructure of the South Central Coast region, helping to shorten the time and cost of bringing goods to the international market, creating a boost for Gia Lai's high-tech agricultural processing industry.
From a land that was only familiar with coffee, pepper and industrial crops, Gia Lai is witnessing a strong transformation in the agricultural processing sector thanks to the participation of businesses such as Green Tropical. Freeze-dried durian is not only a new product, but also a symbol of the strategy of transforming from traditional production to a high value-added model, from market dependence to proactive supply chain.
“The mindset of using technology to do agriculture is no longer a trend, but is becoming a vital requirement in the context of deep integration and global competition. When Gia Lai durians are exported to Europe, Japan, Korea… as high-quality refined products, that is also the time when Vietnamese agricultural products enter the big game - more sustainable, more proactive and more effective” - Mr. Hai expects.
Source: https://baogialai.com.vn/sau-rieng-say-thang-hoa-dinh-hinh-huong-di-moi-cho-nong-san-gia-lai-post329961.html
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