Garlic is a familiar and important spice in Vietnamese cuisine as well as globally. Vietnamese fresh garlic is not only popular domestically but also has significant potential in the export market thanks to its distinctive flavor and good quality.
1. Origin and Characteristics
Garlic has been grown in Vietnam for a long time and has become an indispensable part of many traditional dishes. Vietnamese fresh garlic typically has a moderate size, uniform and firm cloves, and a characteristic pungent aroma. Some famous garlic varieties in Vietnam include common garlic (tỏi ta), Ly Son garlic, and black garlic (a processed product from fresh garlic).
2. Main Growing Regions
The well-known garlic growing regions in Vietnam include:
- Ly Son (Quang Ngai): Famous for its garlic variety with a special flavor, fragrant but not too pungent, small bulbs with uniform cloves. Ly Son garlic is considered a specialty with geographical indication.
- Hai Duong: Known as the “garlic granary” of the North, with a large cultivation area and high yield. Hai Duong garlic has larger bulbs than Ly Son garlic and also has a strong flavor.
- Northern mountainous provinces: Such as Lao Cai and Son La also have garlic cultivation areas, although the output is usually not as large as the two regions mentioned above.
3. Nutritional value
- Garlic is a plant belonging to the onion family (related to onions, shallots, leeks, etc.). Garlic bulbs are a part of the garlic plant, each bulb will contain many cloves of garlic. The garlic cloves are surrounded by a thin layer of skin.
- Garlic is available in all Vietnamese markets and supermarkets. This is a spice that helps make the flavor of many dishes more attractive, not only that, garlic is also used to make dipping sauces.
- In addition, garlic is also known as a traditional medicine, good for health and treating some diseases. Because each garlic bulb contains many nutrients that are good for human health. For example:
- Protein; carbs; vitamins (B1,2,3,6), calcium, manganese, iron, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, etc.
According to some studies, every 100g of garlic contains 6.36g of protein, 33g of carbohydrates, 150g of calories and other nutrients such as B vitamins (B1, B2, B3, B6), iron, calcium, potassium, manganese, magnesium, phosphorus, etc. Garlic contains organic sulfur compounds and glycosides. In addition, garlic also contains a high content of germanium and selenium. In fact, the germanium content in garlic is even higher than that of other precious medicinal herbs such as ginseng, green tea, red tea, etc. These are all nutrients that are good for health.
4. Garlic Products
In addition to fresh whole garlic bulbs, Vietnamese garlic is also processed into many other products to serve consumption and export needs:
- Dried garlic: Fresh garlic is sun-dried or oven-dried for longer preservation.
- Peeled garlic: Fresh garlic is peeled and conveniently packaged for users.
- Fried garlic (crispy fried garlic): Garlic is thinly sliced and deep-fried until crispy, used as a topping for dishes.
- Black garlic: Fresh garlic is naturally fermented under controlled temperature and humidity conditions, creating black garlic with a sweet, mellow taste, a chewy texture, and rich antioxidants.
- Garlic powder: Dried garlic is finely ground into powder, used as a seasoning.
- Other processed products: Such as pickled garlic, garlic-infused wine, chili-garlic sauce, etc.
5. Export Markets
Vietnamese fresh garlic has been present in several international markets. According to recent data, the main export markets for Vietnamese fresh garlic include:
- Cambodia: The largest export market for Vietnamese fresh garlic in 2023.
- Malaysia: Also a consumer market for Vietnamese fresh garlic.
- Thailand: Another neighboring market that imports fresh garlic from Vietnam.
- Other markets: Such as Germany and Poland, although in smaller quantities.
Although Vietnam’s fresh garlic export volume is still modest compared to major garlic exporting countries worldwide, with its good quality and distinctive flavor, Vietnamese garlic still has the potential for growth in the international market. Vietnamese businesses are increasingly focusing on improving product quality, packaging processes, and brand building to expand export markets for fresh garlic and processed garlic products.
To enhance exports, the Vietnamese garlic industry needs to focus on:
- Improving quality and ensuring food safety and hygiene.
- Developing concentrated farming areas and applying VietGAP and GlobalGAP standards.
- Investing in processing technology to diversify export products.
- Conducting market research and building effective distribution channels.
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