In recent days, 9 Hong Fruit Orchard (My Khanh commune) has welcomed a lot of visitors, especially on weekends. Three thousand square meters of yellow Burmese grapes are dug up to make earth banks. Each earth bank plants two rows of Burmese grapes. Their branches intersect and create an impressive space in the middle for visitors to visit. The yellow Burmese grape trees are laden with fruit from root to branch and make visitors admire them. Ms. Ninh Thi Le, a tourist from Bac Ninh province, said: "The Burmese grape trees grow fruit from the trunk, and the fruit is unexpectedly abundant. It's wonderful. This is the first time I come to the suburb of Can Tho, to visit the Burmese grape garden and I am very satisfied.” In addition, visitors can also enjoy the garden chicken braised with Burmese grapes on the spot with a very unique taste, a delicious dish to remember when coming to Phong Dien.

Mr. Pham Van Hoang, owner of 9 Hong Fruit Orchard, said “This year, the weather is favorable, so the fruit is abundant, and the fruit quality is high. Thanks to the control of the COVID-19 epidemic, the output for Burmese grapes is in favorable condition, with a high price, averaging about 12,000 to 15,000 VND/kg. Although Bon Bon Burmese grapes are not sold at a high price as other varieties such as Ha Chau Burmese grapes, Siamese Burmese grapes, and green Burmese grapes, Mr. Hoang chose to plant them because they are laden with fruit, have beautiful colors, and it is convenient for tourism. This is also a unique tourism product of 9 Hong orchard”.

From the above success, it can be seen that, if exploited well, Phong Dien Burmese grape orchards will be an attractive tourist product, an interesting site with a combination of sweet and green orchards. According to statistics of the Agriculture Department of Phong Dien district, the area of ​​Burmese grape cultivation in the district is currently about 787 hectares, of which the area of ​​Burmese grape trees which are fruiting is about 775.5 hectares. Specifically, green Burmese grape trees occupy an area of ​​about 88.8 hectares, yielding 30-40 tons of fruit/ha; Bon Bon Burmese grape trees occupy about 27ha, yielding 40-60 tons/ha; Siamese Burmese grapes occupy about 64.4ha, yielding 35-40 tons/ha; and Ha Chau Burmese grapes occupy the largest area with about 595ha, yielding from 20-25 tons/ha.

Mr. Le Thanh Tung, Head of the Culture and Information Department of Phong Dien district, added “Among the Burmese grape growing households, there are about 20 Burmese grape orchards for tourism, of which about 10 are purely for Burmese grape sightseeing. The rest are mixed with other fruits. For many years, the people of Phong Dien garden have diversified products from Burmese grape trees such as selling fruit as gifts, serving on-site, selling tickets to visit the garden and eating "full stomach" for about 50,000 VND/person, cooking Burmese grapes to make delicious dishes and drinks, etc. Thanks to these activities, the value of Phong Dien Burmese grape trees becomes much higher, despite the competition with other fruit trees. The Department of Culture and Tourism of Phong Dien district was also interested in promoting the Phong Dien Burmese grape brand, introducing it in tourism promotion events; opening Burmese grape sightseeing tours and routes to serve tourists. Especially, at the annual Phong Dien - Can Tho Ecotourism Festival, Phong Dien Burmese grapes are boldly introduced to support farmers to promote and sell Burmese grapes to serve visitors”.

Mr. Le Thanh Tung added, “From June 1 to 3, 2022 (from the 3rd to the 5th of the 5th lunar month), the 1st Phong Dien District’s Fruit Fair was held at the Phong Dien district square. The fair impressively promoted garden specialties, including Burmese grapes. Thereby, Burmese grapes and their specialties are known to many tourists, creating motivation for farmers to preserve the Burmese grape cultivation area, as well as stimulating local tourism through this unique product. From 2022 onwards, this fair will be held periodically on the occasion of the Mid-year Festival (May 5th of the lunar calendar) to introduce Phong Dien fruits, including Burmese grapes”.

Remember about 6 years ago, Associate Professor Le Nguyen Doan Duy and his colleagues from Can Tho University successfully researched and produced a type of beverage and fermented water products from Ha Chau Burmese grapes. Products include carbonated Burmese grape juice, alcoholic Burmese grape juice, pasteurized Burmese grape juice, and Burmese grape wine. These drinks have been introduced and sold to tourists at some tourist attractions in Phong Dien district as well as some other localities in Can Tho city. With experience in promoting specialties in some neighboring localities such as Dong Thap lotus, Vinh Long plum mango, Ben Tre coconut, etc., Phong Dien Burmese grape needs to have more products by making jam, drying, cooking it to make more dishes (sweet and sour Burmese grape hotpot, Burmese grape salad, etc.) to increase the value of agricultural products. Thereby, the government can open a development direction for Phong Dien Burmese growers on the basis of agricultural tourism.