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I
n Vietnam, food without proper qual-
ity certification is sold openly in local
markets. What is more, thousands of
cases of chemically enhanced veg-
etables have been reported in just the
first six months of the year. This all
raises concerns about food safety and
hygiene among both locals and tour-
ists.
At the biggest whole sale night
market of Hanoi, Long Bien, 45 tons of
vegetables are sold every night. “I and
my husband sell tons of vegetables at
the market, some from Vietnam, but
the most preferable vegetables come
from China. Their products keep well
and are very cheap, so the profit is
higher,” said Nguyen Quynh Nga, a 23
year old wholesaler.
“Of course, we know what kind uses
more pesticides and chemicals to keep
them fresh. We can smell it when we
open the truck. Chinese vegetables use
more pesticides and preservative chemi-
cals due to the long journey,” she added.
As a result, a very important part of
the hospitality industry is facing great
risks, with challenging times for service
suppliers in terms of maintaining their
quality standards.
GOING LOCAL
Food safety and hygiene, which
used to be taken for granted, has there-
fore now become something of a luxury.
“Our organic gardens stem from our
first resort in the Maldives, where it was
impossible to import delicate herbs, let-
tuce and vegetables which limited the
menu in terms of fresh ingredients. The
only solution was to import the more
stable seedlings and set aside land for
crops, resulting in fantastic products
that no other resort had at the time,”
said Gary Henden, general manager of
Six Senses Ninh Van Bay Nha Trang,
where there is a dedicated garden to
provide food for the resort’s kitchen.
The Maldives model is now applied
at all Six Senses Resorts and Spas in
Vietnam and Evason Ana Mandara Nha
Trang Resort & Spa as well as Six Senses
Yao Noi, Laamu, and Zighy Bay.
“In Vietnam, we focus on produce
that is safe. All greens must be from a
trusted source and be free from pesti-
cides. That is the reason why we have
our own organic garden to cater for
some of our daily needs,” said Hen-
den. He reveals that 20 per cent of the
garden’s products will be used at the
resort’s restaurants, and 35 per cent are
used in the staff canteen.
Those who have ever taken a trip
to any local market in Vietnam will have
seen a rich selection of fresh vegetables
and herbs. However, it can be rather
uncomfortable, with small dirty aisles.
Now the produce can be experienced
without that feeling in the most luxuri-
ous organic resort gardens in Vietnam.
Vegetables such as morning glory
(rau muong), young green mustard (cai
xanh), amaranth (rau den) and malabar
spinach (mong toi) and fruits such as pa-
Top resorts go organic
With many top resorts now concerned about the quality of produce
available in Vietnam, some are taking matters into their own hands with
small private farms providing fresh organic produce for their kitchens.
Hong Anh
reports