A part of Hóc Môn Wholesale Market is being used as a foodstuff freight transshipment station for HCM City. Photo nld.com.vn

HCM CITY -  Hóc Môn Wholesale Market in HCM City's Hóc Môn District on the first day of partial reopening on September 20 received hundreds of tonnes of food and foodstuff, a dramatic increase over previous weeks.

The market's management company recently allowed 14 traders to deliver farm produce to a transhipment station at the market to meet increasing demand.

The continuing increase in the amount of food and foodstuff delivered to the market has been due to higher demand as well as new regulations that have eased the transport of goods.

The company said that if the operation was effective, the collection areas at the market would be expanded in the near future.

The food arriving on Monday was mostly vegetables from areas such as the Mekong Delta region, Lâm Đồng Province and Lào Cai Province in the north.

Lâm Văn Lợi, a driver from Lào Cai, said that he had transported more than 60 tonnes of potatoes and onions from Lào Cai to the market and was waiting for items to distribute to other places. He said that transport had been more convenient recently and that he would increase the volume of food on future trips if market demand remained high.

Nguyễn Thị Son, an owner of an agricultural granary allowed to trade at Hóc Môn market, said that goods in the provinces were abundant and the prices stable.

The 14 traders are permitted to deliver goods at the transhipment area of ​​about 2,000 square metres. The company said it would soon allow a further 20-30 traders while ensuring safety and COVID-19 prevention measures.

Trader requirements

Each trader participating in the transhipment and distribution of goods is allowed to register four workers with the Hóc Môn Wholesale Market Management Company.

Traders also must provide information about their workers, the quantity and type of goods, and information about vehicles and drivers transporting the goods at least 12 hours before entering the market.

In addition, before entering the market, traders and workers at the wholesale market must show that they have had at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine and fill out a medical declaration.

Earlier, the city had re-opened Bình Điền and Thủ Đức wholesale markets but now is planning to gradually expand the scale at those markets to meet demand.

The market management company of Bình Điền Wholesale Market said the total amount of goods received at the market on September 18 was more than 113 tonnes, of which more than 77 tonnes were seafood and the remaining vegetables and fruits. This was four times higher than the amount received on the first day of reopening on September 7.

A representative of Thủ Đức agricultural wholesale market in Thủ Đức City said that with five traders at the transshipment station, the amount of goods delivered to the market on September 18 was 117 tonnes of vegetables and fruits, an increase of nearly 50 tonnes compared to the previous day, and 10-fold higher than on the first days of re-opening.

On June 28, Hóc Môn Wholesale Market was closed after recording dozens of locally transmitted cases through mass COVID-19 testing. The transhipment station is located in one part of the partially reopened market.

Hóc Môn is one of the city’s three largest wholesale markets, selling 3,500-4,000 tonnes of pork, 2,000 tonnes of vegetables and 1,000 tonnes of fruit every day. — VNS