Lesson 1: Remarkable Development

Fifty years after the liberation of Southern Vietnam and the reunification of the country, Tien Giang province's livestock industry has undergone a journey of strenuous effort to become one of the leading localities in terms of livestock and poultry farming scale in the Mekong Delta region. This is the result of strategic vision, the application of science and technology, and comprehensive development policies aimed at a modern, efficient, sustainable, and environmentally friendly livestock industry.

From primarily subsistence-based livestock farming, after 50 years since the liberation of Southern Vietnam and national reunification, Tien Giang province's livestock industry has made remarkable progress, gradually shifting from small-scale farming to large-scale, concentrated farms that apply science and technology and are environmentally friendly.
The industry's half-century journey is not only marked by impressive figures, but also serves as vivid evidence of the innovative thinking and aspiration for sustainable development of the people of Tien Giang .
FROM SELF-SUFFICIENT TO LARGE-SCALE PRODUCTION

In the early period after liberation, livestock farming in Tien Giang was fragmented, heavily dependent on weather, natural feed, and traditional techniques. Most households raised livestock primarily for family consumption; productivity and product quality were low; and there were no resources to invest in infrastructure and barns.

A model of high-tech, advanced livestock farming in Tien Giang province. Photo provided by the Department of Livestock and Veterinary Medicine.

The livestock breeds are mainly local breeds with slow growth rates, susceptibility to disease, and low productivity. However, with close guidance from the local government and support policies from the central government, the livestock industry in Tien Giang province has undergone a strong transformation. Particularly since around 2000, the province has promoted the transformation of production models, encouraging concentrated farm-based livestock production, applying high technology, gradually building brands, increasing added value, and ensuring food safety.

According to the Provincial Department of Livestock and Veterinary Medicine, by mid-2025, Tien Giang province's livestock industry had achieved many proud accomplishments and risen to the top ranks in the region. Specifically, the pig herd reached nearly 310,000 head, ranking second in the Mekong Delta region (after Ben Tre province), with farm-based livestock production accounting for 27.38% of the total herd. The cattle herd numbered approximately 119,000 head, remaining stable for many consecutive years; semi-industrial and organic cattle farming models are increasingly expanding.

The goat population reached over 130,000 head, continuing to rank second in the region (after Ben Tre province); the trend of controlled, farm-based goat farming is spreading in many localities. The poultry population reached 17.8 million head, leading the Mekong Delta and ranking second in the entire South (after Dong Nai province); farm-based farming accounts for 62% of the total flock. Notably, some specialty poultry products such as black chicken, bantam chicken, quail, etc., have become key commodities, not only consumed domestically but also exported.

Tien Giang province produces over 360 million free-range chicken eggs annually, with over 6.7 million free-range chickens per year, and quail eggs have been exported since 2013, marking a turning point in bringing Tien Giang's livestock products to the world.

Furthermore, diversification in the livestock industry has yielded many positive results; among them, attracting and raising swiftlets has become a new field with great potential. From 199 swiftlet houses in 2011, by mid-2025, Tien Giang had reached 1,782 swiftlet houses, of which 1,216 were in the harvesting stage. Thanks to favorable natural conditions and appropriate support policies, Tien Giang has risen to second place nationwide in swiftlet house development (after Kien Giang province).

Notably, Tien Giang's bird's nest products have officially been exported to China through two businesses: Tri Son Trading and Service Co., Ltd. (My Tho City) and Tan Dong Agricultural Products Co., Ltd. (Go Cong City). This is the result of systematic investment, strict quality control, and clear market orientation.
DIFFICULTIES ARE OPPORTUNITIES FOR TRANSFORMATION

Sharing with us, Deputy Head of the Department of Livestock and Veterinary Medicine of Tien Giang province, Ho Huynh Mai, said: “For the past 50 years, the province's livestock industry has faced many challenges, such as: fluctuating prices, complex diseases, along with the impact of climate change and environmental pollution in livestock farming…”

A model of high-tech, advanced livestock farming in Tien Giang province. Photo provided by the Department of Livestock and Veterinary Medicine.

However, challenges present opportunities for Tien Giang province's livestock industry to break through, leverage its potential and advantages for comprehensive, efficient, sustainable development, and adaptation to climate change. This will be linked to production-consumption chains, increasing added value, applying science and technology, ensuring biosafety, disease control, and food safety, in order to align with the market economy and international integration through the export of various livestock products (quail eggs, bird's nests, etc.).

Therefore, in the face of both challenges and opportunities, the top priority for developing the livestock industry is to innovate thinking, reorganize production, and apply science and technology. Driven by these pressures, the industry has continuously strived to promote production-consumption linkages, build biosafety livestock value chains, and apply science and technology to every stage, from breeding stock and feed to raising, slaughtering, processing, and product consumption.

In addition, people have boldly developed new economic models that bring high efficiency, such as the "Application of mechanization in egg-laying chicken farming" model; the model of applying chicken farming processes according to VietGAP standards, applying a system of raising chickens in cold-storage barns, designed with full equipment in modern industrial farming...

Furthermore, current livestock farming practices must adapt to climate change and international integration, ensuring food safety and meeting the requirements of both domestic and international markets. This is clearly demonstrated through models such as: antibiotic-free farming, geared towards export (quail eggs exported to Japan); farming according to VietGAP standards, organic farming, linked to OCOP and disease control; and the application of high technology in farms, environmental control, and productivity enhancement.

These strategies not only help Tien Giang maintain its position as one of the leading livestock farming centers in the region, but also open up opportunities to reach international markets with clean, high-quality, traceable products and clear brands.

Fifty years is a long time, enough to look back on a journey full of effort and innovation. Today, Tien Giang's livestock industry is no longer the small-scale, fragmented farming of the early years after liberation, but a leading, modern, sustainable, and promising economic sector.

Tien Giang's livestock industry is a vivid testament to the local government's innovation and determination in developing modern agriculture. With the support of the people, businesses, and government, and building upon the foundation laid over the past half-century, Tien Giang province's livestock industry has every reason to continue on its path towards green, clean, and safe development and international integration.

HỮU THÔNG

(to be continued)  

Source: https://baoapbac.vn/kinh-te/202506/nganh-chan-nuoi-huong-phat-trien-ben-vung-than-thien-voi-moi-truong-bai-1-phat-trien-vuot-bac-1046105/