Hue’s specialty - ‘Thanh Tra’ (a local pomelo variety) – being preferred by consumers. Photo: Nguyen Phong
The Provincial People's Committee has supported 12 billion VND for individuals and organizations implementing high-tech agricultural production model.
The opportunity to get rich
On their first days of settling down in the hilly area of Ben Van, Loc Bon commune (Phu Loc district), following the Province's immigration policy, Mr. Ho Da The, as well as many people, was really bored with the magnificent wild mountains and forests.
Through years of hardship during which Mr. The and the people in Ben Van gradually gained experience by trial and error, they could eventually keep their Acacia forests green. Due to the lack of experience in growing and tending plants for the first time, it was not until 5-6 years later that their first forests could be harvested.
As for later crops when the lesson had been “learnt” and experience had been accumulated, their Acacia forests could be harvested on a 4-year cycle. At that time, each hectare of Acacia forest generated the profit of 70-80 million VND, which provided Mr. The and people in this mountainous area with resources to change their lives step by step.
Not long after the first days when the Province adopted the policy on afforesting plantation forests, the whole hilly and untouched mountainous areas of Ben Van, Nam Dong, A Luoi, Phong Dien, Phu Loc, and Huong Thuy were covered with the green color of Acacia forests. Companies and enterprises were "present" in turn, organizing the purchase of products and taking advantage of local raw materials to process and export plantation timber.
The area of plantation forests has been expanding day by day. Up to now, the Province has a total area of 90,000 hectares. Most of the households participating in the afforestation have escaped from poverty and stabilized their lives, whereas those owning 5 hectares of forests and above had the opportunity to get rich.
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The high-tech vegetable growing model being prioritized for investment. Photo: Hoang Loan
Chairman of the Provincial Forest Owners Sustainable Development Association (FOSDA), Mr. Vo Van Du said: “Faced with the requirement to enhance the quality and value of the products, the Province has cooperated with domestic as well as foreign organizations and enterprises to gradually switch to Large Timber Forest (LTF) Plantation Model, certified by Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). Although this innovative model has just been adopted in recent years, it has attracted the participation of many forestry households, individuals and organizations. Up to now, the total area of LTF throughout the Province is about 9,000 hectares. The product value per hectare ranges from 250 to 300 million VND on an 8-year cycle, with the interest being twice or three times higher than that of small timber forests.”
The model worth hundreds of millions VND
In plains and lowlands such as Quang Dien, Phu Vang, and Phong Dien, the growing of clean vegetables in the direction of VietGAP generates hundreds of million VND per hectare. Gotu Kola, a wild vegetable plant growing along the banks of Bo River and canals, was brought home for planting in their gardens by people in Quang Tho commune (Quang Dien district) more than 15 years ago, mainly to serve their daily meals. Suddenly, this plant now becomes the specialty of this lowland area.
When Gotu Kola is concentratedly grown with the total area being expanded to tens of hectares, this plant turns into a commodity which is widely consumed throughout a number of provinces and cities in the South. The production model of Gotu Kola has become the first to generate 100 million VND per hectare in the lowland area of Quang Dien.
Seizing the opportunities and demands of the market, Quang Tho 2 Agricultural Cooperative has encouraged its members and farmers to expand the area of land growing safe Gotu Kola in the direction of VietGAP to 60 hectares in order to serve the processing of this plant into dried herb or tea bags. Recently, a newly launched product – Gotu Kola Powder – has been preferred and strongly consumed by customers.
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Growing safe vegetables in Quang Thanh commune. Photo: H.Trieu
From 100 million VND, now the value of Gotu Kola growing model has been raised to 300 million VND per hectare per year. Thanks to the income from growing Gotu Kola in combination with rice and safe vegetables, Mr. Nguyen Thang as well as hundreds of households in Quang Tho commune have escaped from poverty, stabilized their lives and become better-off.
Quang Tho has become one of the first communes of Quang Dien district as well as the whole Province to meet the standards of New-style Rural Area (NRA) and is building an advanced NRA commune, heading towards being a typical NRA. In the overall achievements of Quang Tho commune, there is the “presence” of the key plant Gotu Kola and safe vegetables.
A huge number of fresh vegetables has been consumed by big markets and supermarkets within the Province, not to mention that being sold to other provinces. This is a great advantage for farmers to expand their production, seizing the opportunity to be better-off, or even get rich from growing safe vegetables.
Particularly in Quang Thanh commune, there are about 70 hectares of land growing clean vegetables. Hundreds of households participating in this model have stabilized their lives. Hoa Chau Establishment of Preliminary Processing of Agricultural Products, supermarkets and wholesale markets in the Province are the largest consumers of vegetable products for farmers.
Mr. Ho Dac Tho, Head of the Provincial Plant Production and Protection Division, informed that growing clean and safe vegetables in the direction of VietGAP was innovative and in line with current practical needs. Up to now, the Province has hundreds of hectares growing clean vegetables and is boosting the replication of this model. Some localities have initially replicated many high-tech agricultural production models by constructing 26 net houses to grow clean vegetables and safe fruit trees, with a total area of about 20,000 square meters.
In addition to typical rice fields, the organic rice production model has been initially formed in the districts of Quang Dien, Phong Dien, Phu Vang, with an area of about 3,000 hectares. Some households make bold investments in establishing farms and net houses for high-tech farming, such as the cantaloupe farm in Thuy Bieu Ward (Hue City) and the hydroponic vegetable garden in Phu Thuong commune (Phu Vang district), etc.
The “value chain” production model is adopted, which establishes the connection between producers and businesses in the process of growing, tending, branding and consuming the products.
The production model of key crops, which has helped many farmers, is gradually being replicated in many mountainous and delta localities, creating prestigious brand names in the market such as oranges from Nam Dong, Thanh Tra from Thuy Bieu and Phong Thu, etc.
Particularly, the area of land growing pomelo and thanh tra reaches about 300 hectares in Thuy Bieu and 135 hectares in Phong Thu commune, while that of oranges registers hundreds of hectares in the two mountainous districts of Nam Dong and A Luoi. Each hectare of land growing oranges or thanh tra generates hundreds of millions VND per crop.
Story and photos: Hoang Trieu