Dong Thap (VNA) – The Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap i🧸s a leading locality for farm produce, with🅷 lotus being the most renowned, making it the land of the pink lotus.

Rich, diverse cuisine from lotus

All parts of lotus, from the rhizome, seed and plumule to leaf, can be used to prepare many delicious dishes such as lotus rhizome salad, rice steamed with lotus leaves, lotus jam, lotus seed congee, chicken stew with seeds, and lotus leaf tea. In May this year, the World Records Union (WorldKings) and the Vietnam Records Organisation (Vietkings) recognised the first Dong Thap Lotus Festival 2022 as the world's largest event of the processing and presentation of 200 lotus-based dishes. Boasting large lotus growing areas and a rich culinary culture, Dong Thap province organised the processing and presentation of 200 lotus-based dishes, intending to promote the local specialities and introduce domestic and foreign friends to the culinary quintessence of Vietnam in general and the locality in particular. At the first Dong Thap Lotus Festival 2022, themed "Lotus of a new day", 10 culinary experts and 50 chefs were on hand to process and present 200 delicacies made from various parts of the lotus plant. The setting of the world record has helped the lotus-related sector in Dong Thap find new products and specialities with export potential to bring them to the world. The provincial People's Committee has also implemented a plan to promote the value of these 200 dishes to attract domestic and foreign tourists, thus contributing to local socio-economic development. According to the plan, in the 2022-2025 period, Dong Thap will focus on organising training courses on culinary knowledge and cooking techniques for chefs in local restaurants, hotels, homestays, farm stays, and tourist sites; compiling, printing and digitalising brochures of 200 dishes made from lotus; and organising a culinary contest on the occasion of the province's annual cultural and tourism events.

Unexpected breakthroughs from "planting lotus on rice fields"

The immense lotus ponds themselves are an advantage for tourism development. However, not all places in Dong Thap grow lotus in large areas. Therefore, to take advantage of the brand name of the "land of pink lotus", in localities that do not pay much attention to lotus development, such as Hong Ngu township and Hong Ngu district, large lotus fields have appeared, surprising many tourists and increasing choices for those who want to discover the beauty of the land, people and culture of Dong Thap. On the land of inefficient rice crops, the couple of Tran Thai Ngoc and Mai Thi Thoa (Tan Hoa hamlet, Tan Hoi commune, Hong Ngu township) decided to switch to planting lotus in association with tourism development to improve family income. Thoa said that this move has helped double her household's income, from 20 million VND (845.8 USD) per rice crop to around 60-70 million per lotus crop. Nguyen Ngoc Thuong, Director of the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said that besides the economic value, lotus contains many symbolic meanings in terms of spiritual culture, as it is a cultural symbol of goodness, purity and serenity. This is a basis for positioning and building solutions to upgrade the spiritual tourism value chain associated with lotus in Go Thap Relic Site in Thap Muoi district in particular, and Dong Thap in general, Thuong added. Lotus is a signature plant of the province, which can be seen almost everywhere and is a local magnet for tourists. Between August and November is the best time of the year for visitors to enjoy the beauty of such flowers. Lotus fields in Dong Thap province are among the most popular weekend destinations for travellers from Mekong Delta localities and Ho Chi Minh City./.