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New EU-funded project to boost smart agriculture in Mekong Delta
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| Three members of the black pigs project. — Photo kinhtedothi.vn |
HÀ NỘI — Three students have won acclaim for getting off their trotters and starting their own pig farm.
The Hà Nội-based Đại Nam University students have launched the first large scale Mường Khương black pig farm, providing safe pork to the market.
Speaking about the team’s Hắc mộc heo (Black pigs) project, Trần Thị Minh Hoa, head of the team, said once last year her friend from the northern mountainous province of Lai Châu brought Mường Khương pork to Hà Nội so her friends could try her homeland’s speciality.
Hoa immediately wanted to sell the delicious food in Hà Nội and teamed up with Bùi Minh Hòa and Nguyễn Văn Dũng of the Enterprise Management Faculty to go to the province for research.
They learned that the black pig was a rare and valuable species, well adapted to natural condition and fast growing. However, no one seemed to be rearing them on a large scale.
The students sent their idea for the pig farm to the ‘Youth with start-up and young creators’ contest, and won first prize, before going on to win third prize at the National Startup Competition 2018.
At the beginning of this year, the team founded a farm raising Mường Khương black pigs in Hon Village, Tam Đường District in Lai Châu.
The farm is 5,400sq.m with more than 20 sows.
Crucially, the pigs are fed with natural plants including maize and beans, while 5 per cent of their meals are made up of medicinal herbs.
“The herbal remedy is a natural antibiotic substance helping pigs grow well. It is also the secret creating the unique brand name of our farm,” said Hoa.
Thanks to the herbal remedy, the farm’s pork has a delicious flavour.
A grown black pig weighing more than 30kg can be sold for VNĐ130,000 (US$5) per kilo. A breeding pig is sold at VNĐ1.2-1.5 million ($50-65) per kilo.
The farm aims to supply pork for restaurants and travellers, especially around Sa Pa in Lào Cai Province.
Now all three members of the team are finishing their studies, so the farm is run by three local people. The team supervises the work via a camera system.
Hoa said the team hoped to widen the farm, and welcome tourists to visit and chow down on some pigs on the farm’s premises. — VNS
