Organic farming footprint

Based on the potential advantages of land conditions, climate and weather, in recent years, the agricultural sector, localities and farmers in the province have promoted production according to clean agricultural processes, organic agriculture associated with key products with competitive advantages of the province such as organic rice, coffee, pepper... With sustainable farming methods, eliminating toxic chemicals, organic agriculture not only brings safe products but also contributes to land regeneration, preserving the ecosystem for the future.

Organic rice production model linking product consumption between Quang Tri Trading Corporation Joint Stock Company and the Provincial Agricultural Extension Center at Tien My Cooperative, Vinh Lam Commune, Vinh Linh District - Photo: LA

Reduce "hardship", increase income for farmers

Starting his organic rice farming business in 2018, Mr. Nguyen Van Tuan in Tien My 2 village, Vinh Lam commune, Vinh Linh district now has a business that many people dream of. Mr. Tuan said that in 2018, he boldly registered with Quang Tri Trading Corporation Joint Stock Company to cooperate in organic rice production.

After two consecutive rice crops of safe rice cultivation to improve, detoxify, and supplement nutrients for the soil, in 2019, Mr. Tuan officially met the conditions to produce organic rice on an area of ​​0.5 hectares. While working and expanding the area, he now has 10 hectares of organic rice fields producing high-quality rice varieties ST25. With two crops of production each year, he harvests about 110 tons of organic rice, with a selling price of 13,000 VND/kg, after deducting expenses, he "pockets" more than 400 million VND. With a high income from rice cultivation, he has bought cars, plows, rice harvesters, and drones to provide pesticide spraying services for local people.

According to Mr. Tuan, since starting to produce organic rice, he has never felt that farming has been so "easy". He only needs to plow the fields, level the fields, the remaining steps such as transplanting rice, fertilizing, spraying biological products to prevent pests, harvesting... are all done by machine and are undertaken by Quang Tri Trading Corporation. The company also buys all the straw discharged after harvesting rice right in the fields.

“All stages in the organic rice production process are mechanized. Even after harvesting, instead of having to bring the rice home to dry, the company buys the fresh rice right in the field, so farmers almost no longer have to work with mud on their hands and feet like in traditional rice farming. The selling price is also guaranteed from the beginning of the season, so there is no need to worry about the situation of “good harvest, low price” like before,” Tuan shared.

Chairman of the Board of Directors of Quang Tri Trading Corporation Ho Xuan Hieu said that according to the company's survey, the whole province has about 5,000 hectares that are eligible for safe rice and organic rice production, mainly concentrated in Hai Lang, Trieu Phong, Vinh Linh, Gio Linh, and Cam Lo districts. From 2021 to now, the company has cooperated with about 700 farmers to produce safe rice, VietGAP rice, and organic rice on an area of ​​more than 410 hectares. The total annual harvest output is about 24,000 tons of fresh rice. Safe rice, VietGap rice, and organic rice under the company's Sepon brand are present in many provinces and cities across the country and are eligible for export to Europe.

According to Mr. Hieu, the association between farmers and businesses in organic rice cultivation has helped increase mechanization in production, increasing economic efficiency for farmers. In particular, businesses provide technical support, provide seeds, input materials, and purchase products; farmers produce on their own land.

Thanks to that, farmers will not lose their land, but their land in new-style agricultural cooperatives will be cleared of fragmented fields, forming large fields, divided into plots according to the canal system according to the right techniques and traffic infrastructure for businesses to use rice transplanters, unmanned aerial vehicles for spraying pesticides, rice harvesters, and straw balers. In addition, businesses also build modern, high-tech drying, milling, and preservation systems.

Harvesting organic rice in Hai Lang district - Photo: LA

According to Mr. Hieu, growing organic rice according to the company's process is very convenient for farmers. Accordingly, the company provides ST25 rice varieties, materials, biological products, supports farmers from sowing, transplanting rice to harvesting, and guarantees the products. Rice is fertilized with organic fertilizers of natural origin, mainly chicken manure taken from farms and composted with native microorganisms according to the company's technical process.

Adding fish protein is fermented from fresh fish with sugar; calcium, potassium from pork bones, cow bones, eggshells burned and soaked in vinegar; mineral source for soil is produced from banana tree trunks marinated in brown sugar. In addition, rice plants are also sprayed with a mixture of chicken eggs and fresh milk. This is a nutritious preparation, especially amino acids, providing nutrients for rice plants. Rice directly absorbs amino acids into the plant, providing a part of protein for the plant, helping the grains to be firm.

In addition, the remaining substances from the egg and milk mixture stuck on the leaves become food for the growth of exogenous fungi. When this type of fungus grows, it will secrete substances that inhibit other organisms, contributing to reducing diseases on rice plants. In particular, to prevent pests, the company has produced biological pesticides, using folk ingredients such as chili, garlic, ginger, crushed tobacco, soaked in beer. Thereby, helping farmers avoid contact with toxic chemicals, the rice grains are firm and plump. Organic fertilizers also create a natural ecosystem, so the rice soil becomes increasingly loose.

Clean agriculture in the future

If in 2017, the area of ​​organic rice production and natural farming in the province only reached about 250 hectares, up to now, the whole province has about 1,300 hectares of organic crops and organic crops that bring efficiency in all 3 aspects: economy - society - environment. Specifically, for rice production, the fresh rice yield reaches over 65 quintals/ha and is purchased by enterprises right in the field or dry rice at a price agreed upon from the beginning of the season.

After deducting costs, farmers earn a profit of nearly 30 million VND/ha, 7-10 million VND/ha higher than conventional farming. For pepper production, the selling price of organic pepper is 10,000-12,000 VND/kg higher than the market price, combined with low investment costs, so farmers earn a profit of 10-15 million VND/ha higher than conventional production. Similarly, for organic coffee production, the purchase price is 5,000 VND/kg higher than the market price, helping coffee growers earn a profit of 48-50 million VND, 15-20 million VND/ha higher than traditional production.

For fruit trees, in recent years, localities such as Hai Lang, Gio Linh, Trieu Phong have promoted the development of orange trees in an organic direction, meeting organic standards... and have brought high efficiency, with an average income of 500-600 million VND/ha. In particular, through the linkage chain, farmers have stable output, are not forced to lower prices by traders, and are organic products, safe for health, so they are favored by consumers. Organic production also contributes to protecting the health of producers and environmental sustainability.

However, in addition to positive results, clean agricultural production and organic agriculture in the province still have certain shortcomings and limitations. Specifically, the expansion of organic agricultural models is still slow, especially for rice, which has not yet met the target of the Resolution of the 17th Provincial Party Congress, by 2025, there will be 1,000 hectares of organic rice production and natural farming. Infrastructure has not met the requirements for expanding the area of ​​organic agricultural production. State support policies and resources are not strong enough to encourage the acceleration of the transition to organic agriculture. The high cost of organic agricultural production and the long payback period have not attracted many businesses to invest.

Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Environment Nguyen Hong Phuong said that in order to overcome the above limitations, the Provincial People's Committee issued Action Plan No. 55/KH-UBND dated March 7, 2025 on implementing Directive No. 38-CT/TU of the Provincial Party Standing Committee on promoting organic agricultural production, natural farming, circular agriculture, high-tech agriculture, and linkage in agricultural product value chains.

Accordingly, the goal by 2030 is for the whole province to have over 3,000 hectares of crops cultivated according to organic standards, including over 2,000 hectares of organic rice and natural farming organized according to value chains. The rate of organic livestock products will reach at least 2% of the total livestock products produced in the province.

According to Ms. Phuong, to achieve the above goal, along with various forms of propaganda, transfer of results and achievements of organic agricultural production models, the agricultural sector continues to coordinate with localities in planning and selecting suitable organic agricultural production areas to exploit the potential advantages of regions and areas associated with perfecting synchronous production, preliminary processing and processing infrastructure; gradually forming large fields serving organic production as well as creating conditions to invite businesses to invest in linking production and product consumption.

Promote research and application of technical advances to apply to production such as: high-quality seeds, organic fertilizers, biological pesticides... Integrate AI and IoT technology into organic farming to optimize production, monitor the environment and warn of natural disasters. Support organic certification, VietGAP, GlobalGAP and traceability to enhance product market accessibility.

It can be said that the development of organic agriculture is not only a sustainable direction, meeting the increasing demand for safe and quality food, but also contributing to improving farmers' livelihoods, protecting the environment and regenerating land resources. The achievements from the organic rice, pepper, coffee and fruit tree production models have demonstrated the great potential of organic agriculture.

With the support of the government, businesses and farmers, it can be affirmed that clean agriculture and organic agriculture will become a prominent mark, affirming the position of Quang Tri on the map of clean and sustainable agriculture of the whole country.

Le An

Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/dau-an-nong-nghiep-huu-co-193364.htm