Dinh Hoa: Making cinnamon a key crop

After nearly 10 years of support from the State, people have boldly expanded their planting areas. Up to now, cinnamon trees have brought a stable source of income to thousands of households in Dinh Hoa district. In the near future, cinnamon will become a key crop in the economic development of the district's forests and hills.

People in Dong Dinh hamlet, Kim Phuong commune (Dinh Hoa) check cinnamon forest. Photo: TL

In the early 1990s , when implementing the PAM Project under the “greening of barren hills” program, people planting forests in Dinh Hoa district were supported with rice. At that time, most households chose to plant acacia, fat, and linden, but some households in Kim Tan 3 and Kim Tan 4 hamlets, Kim Son commune (later merged into Dong Dinh hamlet, Kim Phuong commune) chose to plant cinnamon trees. However, the main purpose at that time was only to receive rice support from the State , not to consider economic development from this crop.

The first cinnamon trees that took root in Dong Dinh hamlet grew as fast as other native plants, but while other forest trees that were “of age” were sought after by traders, no one paid any attention to cinnamon trees. Therefore, some households growing cinnamon under the PAM Project in Dong Dinh could not help but feel anxious.

However, in 2011 and 2012, traders began to buy cinnamon and cinnamon growers in Dong Dinh had a source of income (each hectare of cinnamon sold for 800-900 million VND). After selling their products and having more capital, local people continued to plant the next batch of cinnamon. Some households still kept the cinnamon trees planted in 1992, each tree now worth 4 to 5 million VND.

Mr. Trieu Thanh Binh, Head of Dong Dinh Hamlet, shared: Compared to other native crops, cinnamon trees bring in much higher income. Therefore, my family continues to plant the second batch of cinnamon, and now we have started pruning branches and selling leaves. Currently, the whole hamlet has 130 hectares of cinnamon. Realizing the economic efficiency of cinnamon planting by Dong Dinh people, people in some neighboring hamlets and communes have also started buying seedlings to plant...

The cinnamon hill of Mr. Luong Kim Lieng's family, in Thai Trung hamlet, Quy Ky commune (Dinh Hoa) has been planted for 9 years, and the branches and leaves have been harvested twice for sale.

At the 23rd District Party Congress, term 2015-2020, Dinh Hoa district has oriented to restructure the forest economy, increase the value of forestry land use by special crops, in which cinnamon is determined to be included in the forestry development structure. The district aims to make cinnamon a key crop in the development of the forest economy, striving to plant 10,000 hectares by 2030.

To successfully complete this goal, the people are supported with seedlings by the State; households growing cinnamon in protective forests are also supported with fertilizers. After 10 years of development, the cinnamon growing area in Dinh Hoa district has reached about 4,150 hectares, mainly concentrated in the communes of Quy Ky, Linh Thong, Lam Vy, Diem Mac, etc.

Mr. Luan Duc Quynh, Chairman of Quy Ky Commune People's Committee, said: With the advantage of forest land area, from 2014 to now, people in the commune have planted more than 700 hectares of cinnamon, of which the harvested cinnamon area accounts for nearly 30%. In the commune, hundreds of households have escaped poverty and become rich thanks to cinnamon planting. Compared to planting acacia, cinnamon trees have an economic value 5-6 times higher.

Mr. Luong Kim Lieng, a resident of Thai Trung hamlet, Quy Ky commune, shared: According to technical standards, cinnamon is planted with a density of 5,000 trees/ha. Cinnamon planting only takes the first 2 years to clear the undergrowth, by the 3rd year the cinnamon canopy is covered, weeds cannot grow and the cinnamon trees are almost free of pests and diseases. From the 5th year, cinnamon trees begin to be harvested, branches and leaves trimmed for sale.

Vu Hoa Company Limited (Cho Chu town, Dinh Hoa) processes cinnamon branches and leaves.

Processing cinnamon branches and leaves at Vu Hoa Company Limited (Cho Chu town, Dinh Hoa). Photo: TL

Currently, the selling price of dried cinnamon bark is 50,000 VND/kg; branches and leaves are sold for 1,400 VND/kg; tree trunks after peeling off the bark are also sold for 1,000 VND/kg. Cinnamon consumption is quite good, the total revenue from the time the cinnamon tree is pruned and leaves are sold until the 17th year (age of harvesting the bark and selling the tree) is about 1.3 billion VND/ha.

When the cinnamon trees reach harvest age, Vu Hoa Company Limited (located in Cho Chu town, Dinh Hoa district) will purchase and consume the products. Currently, the Company has a cinnamon processing factory with a maximum capacity of 50 tons of branches and leaves/day.

Mr. Nguyen Van Vu, Director of Vu Hoa Company Limited, informed: With cinnamon branches and leaves grown since 2015, we purchase and separate them into parts to sell branches and leaves or process cinnamon leaf powder and extract essential oils. In the coming time, based on the cinnamon growing area, the Company will invest in building a factory to refine cinnamon products with high economic value. At that time, the value of cinnamon trees brought to people will be higher and truly become a key crop in the economic development of the hills and forests in the district...

Source