BẮC GIANG — The second Lục Ngạn fruit festival 2017, held in the northern mountain province of Bắc Giang on Saturday, has helped promote high quality fruit products and create opportunities for business enterprises to boost close links with each other, as well as with consumers in domestic markets, said officials.

Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, Nguyễn Thanh Bình, who is also the chief organiser of the event, confirmed the festival had made a contribution to eco-tourism and investment in agriculture in the province.

The festival, held in the centre of Chũ town in Lục Ngạn District, also helped build value chains for some key fruit products of the district in particular, and the province in general, in the direction of sustainable socio-economic development.

Lục Ngạn District is famous for a variety of fruit specialties, including the litchi fruits that have won prestige in domestic and world markets.

“The festival is an occasion to honour farmers’ achievements in growing and providing the highest quality fruit products,” said the provincial official.

As part of the festival, several workshops were held, covering issues in trading, planting and protecting the environment by promoting green development in fruit growing and production.

At the event, orchard owners from different regions across the country shared their experience of producing good quality fruit that meets food safety and hygiene standards.

They revealed their use of safe biological and herbal products in orchards, instead of plant protection products and chemical fertilizers. The households have been provided with stamps affirming product origin traceability that are put on qualified fruit before it is sold.

Vice chairman of the province’s People’s Committee, Dương Văn Thái, said the province had set up a large agricultural production zone with fruit planting areas making up about 47,000ha, or the third largest area in the country.

Most of the area, about 30,000ha, is used for planting litchi – a fruit that is very well-known in Việt Nam and around the world.

According to the festival organisation board, Bắc Giang Province has an ideal climate for agro-forestry economic development.

The lower mountainous region is suitable for growing various fruit trees such as litchi, pomelo, orange, custard apple and persimmon, especially Lục Ngạn District, which has many high-quality orchards.— VNS