Mutant orchid prices nosedive in Vietnam
The steep price decline has left some of the country’s most sought-after orchid varieties, including Co Do (Red Flag), Bao Duy, and Doi Mat Pleyku (Pleiku Eyes) orchids, virtually worthless. Even Phu Tho and Hien Oanh orchids, two varieties deemed ‘national orchids,’ now sell for just thousands of dong each. Vo Thanh Rin, a veteran orchid seller who sets up his stand each day at the Cau Trang intersection in Binh Hung Hoa A Ward, Binh Tan District, Ho Chi Minh City, has been struggling amidst the falling prices. “I’m forced to sell my mutant orchids, including five-petal white Phu Tho and Hien Oanh, for just several hundred thousand dong,” Rin explained. A bitter reality The sudden pop of Vietnam’s orchid bubble has left sellers across the country with significant debt. In mid-2020, D., a mutant orchid seller in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak, spent VND50 million (US$2,109) buying two five-petal white Phu Tho kies, one five-petal white Hien Oanh kie, and one Hong Yen T...