Yeast wine is exported to Japan For the first time

The most essential and decisive solution for agroforestry development in recent times in Bac Kan province is the OCOP program for each commune and ward. Bac Kan province has developed agricultural products, including agricultural products that have become commodities through preliminary processing and deep processing, which have increasingly improved in quality, ensuring standards in terms of design and product packaging.

Bang Phuc yeast wine is recognized as an OCOP product of Bang Phuc commune, Cho Don district. The province has been famous for its product throughout the country for many years.

However, so far, the products have only been sold in a small retail form in plastic cans to market. A number of establishments have been interested in producing glass bottles with beautiful designs and full labels since 2016.

Currently, consumers in the market are very fond of Bang Phuc leaf yeast wine, because this product has a delicious taste produced from natural yeast. The product is entirely free of chemicals and flavors,  unlike other alcohol products on the market today.

As a consequence, ensuring export to foreign markets, especially Japan with strict standards of food safety and hygiene has confirmed the quality of this craft wine.

Up to now, Thanh Tam Cooperative, Bang Phuc Commune (Cho Don) has signed a contract and handed over a batch of traditional yeast wine with Komeco.Ltd Distribution Agent for export to Japan. The first export shipment has a quantity of more than 8,000 bottles, ensuring the quality and design according to the partners' requirements.

Before that, the export partner came to Thanh Tam Cooperative to survey, taste, and take the wine sample for testing and recognized the quality of export to the Japanese market.

Bang Phuc commune has a cool climate and clean water, which is an important factor in making the famous traditional yeast wine.

The craft of making wine here has existed for many generations. Previously, the product was only sold in the province, but now it is available in many areas and cities in the region. This is the first time Bang Phuc's traditional yeast wine has been exported to foreign countries.

Currently, the production of yeast wine by the people of Bang Phuc commune is more than 6,000 liters/day, and the revenue from winemaking and related services is about VND60 billion/year. Particularly, Thanh Tam Cooperative with export products currently has 24 members, linking production with 11 local ethnic minority households.

The co-operative's yeast wine product has been granted the provincial 3-star OCOP certificate. On average, each month, the unit produces and sells 10,000 liters of yeast wine to the market.

Ms. Nong Thi Tam, Director of Thanh Tam Cooperative, said that in the past, yeast wine was produced in small-scale production and they are mainly sold locally. In 2018 the province began to expand and look for partners. Up to now, the cooperative's products have met export standards. Export to Japan will help the cooperative to expand the production and improve the lives of its members.

According to Mr. Nguyen Van Hao, a representative of Komeco.Ltd in Vietnam, Bang Phuc leaf wine has great export potential. The product has good quality, ensures safety and hygiene, and is produced in large quantities. In the near future, the business will continue to support more packaging and bottle designs for the long-term export of this product.

Vice Chairman of Bac Kan Provincial People's Committee, Ms. Do Thi Minh Hoa, assessed that the export of Bang Phuc leaf wine is a great step forward in agricultural production and processing of agro-products of the province.

The Japanese market is very demanding on product quality, so it is a great success for people in mountainous areas to meet these requirements. In the coming time, the province will continue to support cooperatives to develop several potential endemic agro-products. This will continue exporting to other markets.

Bang Phuc's traditional yeast leaf wine, when exported to Japan, has proven the province's ability to produce high-quality products. It ensures strict standards for the export of cooperatives in mountainous areas, which is still difficult to manage.