The “secret” ginseng passed down through generations on Ngoc Linh peak is now famous, identified as a “national treasure” with a brilliant future. However, for Ngoc Linh ginseng to shine on high mountains and ancient forests, specific policies, regulations, and more importantly, serious and responsible societal involvement, especially from businesses, are needed. Understanding this, businessman Nguyen Duc Luc – Chairman of Sam Sam Company Limited, has pioneered investment with passion and resources to develop Ngoc Linh ginseng to its rightful stature.
Recently, Ngoc Linh ginseng has received significant attention from the Government, ministries, sectors, and localities: From becoming a “national treasure” – National Product (Decision 787/QĐ-TTg dated 05/6/2017 by the Prime Minister) to a Vietnamese Ginseng Development Program until 2030 (Decision No. 611/QĐ-TTg dated 01/6/2023) has been issued. Currently, the project for developing and establishing a Medicinal Herb Industrial Center in Quang Nam province, with Ngoc Linh ginseng as the key crop, is also being reviewed by ministries, sectors, and localities for government approval. Quang Nam province, located on the eastern slope of the Ngoc Linh range, has for many years issued mechanisms and implemented practical solutions to encourage, conserve, and develop this rare plant species. Particularly, Nam Tra My district, where the ginseng takes root, has been given special attention through specific and practical actions.
The Journey to Ngoc Linh Ginseng
In response to the State’s policy, many businesses have actively engaged. In Quang Nam specifically, businessman Nguyen Duc Luc was a pioneer from the initial plan (in 2008), early investment in planting areas (in 2016), building a factory (120 billion VND in 2018), and currently making the largest investment (over 200 billion VND). For him, Ngoc Linh ginseng is more than just a chance encounter – it became a passion and aspiration. From an infrastructure construction company in Quang Nam’s mountainous region, having opportunities to hear about the precious medicinal plant from Tra Linh, he deeply experienced its effects and immense value when using it, and then decided to pursue and conquer this small yet incredibly valuable plant.
From nurturing and exploring, in 2014, he decided to plant and “take root” with ginseng. In 2015, Sam Sam Company Limited was established, leading in forest environment service leasing for ginseng cultivation according to the province’s policy. The beginning was always challenging, with the greatest difficulty being convincing locals to demarcate production areas and protect ginseng gardens. Restricting people’s movement in the forest was not simple, as it meant changing a long-standing custom. The company collaborated with local authorities to visit each household, advocating for production zoning with promises of harmonious benefits. During the day, people were working, so discussions could only happen at night, and it took an entire year to secure forest land for planting.
In 2016, after being allocated 10 hectares of forest by the Provincial People’s Committee, the Company invested nearly 20 billion VND in seedlings, protection, and care. From this point, the journey of understanding growth characteristics, propagation processes, and biological management began. Growing ginseng at the household scale is not difficult, but for businesses, it is very complex – a strong wind, an erosive rain, rat bites, pests, and diseases could destroy everything. In that first year, over 10,000 ginseng plants were affected by leaf fungus and root rot, causing the business significant losses.
When difficulties arise, passion rises higher. He and his colleagues sought experts to learn from, inviting Japanese specialists to guide and transfer plantation management techniques. Spending extensive time living and sleeping in the garden, he distilled a comprehensive process for ginseng seedling cultivation, care, pest management, harvesting, and propagation, meeting standards for medicinal properties, pharmacology, active ingredient content, minerals, and trace elements. From this success, the enterprise expanded its plantation area to 200 hectares, sowing and growing 500,000 ginseng plants.
Transforming Ginseng into a Commodity Product
When the cultivation and care processes were standardized, the Company began commissioning research projects, applying extraction, preparation, and manufacturing of pharmaceutical products derived from Ngoc Linh ginseng and other precious medicinal herbs from Quang Nam. In 2018, Sam Sam invested 120 billion VND to build an Extraction Plant in Tam Thang Industrial Park on 2.5 hectares. From this point, dozens of pharmaceutical and medicinal products originating from Ngoc Linh ginseng were created, entered the market, and received high consumer appreciation.
The Company also invested in establishing a Biotechnology Center, receiving technology transfer for Ngoc Linh ginseng tissue culture (NCM) in-vitro from the Quang Nam Province Science and Technology Department. Currently, Sam Sam has experimentally planted 23,000 seedlings, meeting high-quality standards. The successful tissue culture propagation has helped preserve precious genetic resources and solved the challenge of seed sources for industrial-scale cultivation. Sam Sam has become a pioneer in research, development, and conservation of Ngoc Linh ginseng through asexual propagation methods, with a production capacity of 1 million seedlings/year (targeting 5 million seedlings/year by 2030).
To diversify products and enhance Ngoc Linh ginseng’s value, the Company is also developing a 100-hectare medicinal herb area in Nam Giang district with an investment of 100 billion VND and plans to build another large factory soon. This represents a step-by-step realization of the ambition to promote the medicinal herb industry and establish a Medicinal Herb Industrial Center in Quang Nam.
Development Linkage
Despite achieving significant successes, entrepreneur Nguyen Duc Luc remains deeply concerned about the future: Why has South Korea been able to develop a “billion-dollar” ginseng industry, and many questions continue to trouble him. After careful consideration, he believes the time has come for a specific mechanism for Ngoc Linh ginseng development. South Korea has a law on ginseng, so Vietnam should also have strict regulations on standards, assessment criteria, and specific regulations and controls on Ngoc Linh ginseng content in each product (pharmaceuticals, food, cosmetics, etc.) to avoid equating Ngoc Linh ginseng with other types of ginseng, and simultaneously must have a price control mechanism. To develop the ginseng industry, it is essential to trace the origin, apply consistent management of quality, nutritional sources, disease control, etc., ensuring no impact on consumers. Sam Sam has repeatedly proposed and recommended that state agencies quickly complete specific, transparent mechanisms, policies, and legal frameworks.
To promote the development of Ngoc Linh ginseng, more businesses need to seriously and responsibly engage. However, to encourage long-term investor commitment, capital difficulties must be quickly resolved. Currently, banks are very cautious about lending to businesses investing in medicinal herb cultivation areas. Establishing a Ngoc Linh ginseng area is very costly, with high seedling prices (150,000 VND per seed) and a long extraction cycle of 3-5 years or more, while businesses must manage independently. Sam Sam Group’s cultivation area is worth hundreds of billions of VND but cannot be borrowed against because forest land and ginseng plants cannot be mortgaged. Moreover, this high-value crop currently lacks an insurance mechanism.
Mr. Luc shares that Ngoc Linh ginseng must be grown under forest canopies, which is a natural law. For this national product to develop well, strong linkages between different stakeholders are crucial, and Ngoc Linh ginseng urgently needs the decisive action of local authorities, involvement of financial organizations, cooperation between businesses, and the consensus and support of the people.
Source: Binh Minh (Vietnam Business Forum)
