Starting a business from coconut tubers

Rowing a boat to take us to visit the coconut plantations with coconut trees of different ages, Mr. Dang said: “Before, there were too many dry coconuts, coconuts and coconut meat were both cheap. There were times when there were thousands of unsold coconuts, and I could not finish feeding the whole neighborhood. At that time, I thought, why not try growing coconuts for their roots?” That idea came by chance, but became a turning point in his life.

Mr. Le Trong Dang visits the coconut garden. Photo: DANG LINH

Initially, Mr. Dang invested in more than 200 coconut trees of the old Hon coconut variety, with large fruits and large tubers. Due to lack of experience, only about 90 trees remained. But he believed that his hometown coconut trees, as long as he worked hard, would have a good harvest one day. Seeing that the restaurant had a popular coconut tuber salad, he had more confidence. He taught himself how to chop, peel, and preserve them, then switched from selling whole tubers to retailing, vacuum-sealing and delivering to customers far away. Since 2012, he has sold them to the market and made a profit of more than 80 million VND. Currently, he plants about 20,000 coconut trees along the embankment of 2.5 hectares of shrimp square, of which about 15,000 trees are about to be harvested. “At first, the price was 25,000 VND/kg for the type that had not been separated from the old leaves. Now the price has doubled but there is still not enough stock. Some people order hundreds of kilos at a time, I deliver to everywhere from Phu Quoc, Kien Hai to Ho Chi Minh City,” said Mr. Dang.

Coconut tubers with salt dip is a popular dish nowadays. Photo: DANG LINH

For Mr. Dang, coconut tubers are not only a dish but also a part of his childhood memories. In the past, if you wanted to eat coconut tubers, you had to cut down the whole coconut tree that was bearing fruit. It was both time-consuming and wasteful, so few families dared to cut it down. But now, with the coconut growing model for tubers, Mr. Dang only needs 3 years to harvest, the trees are planted in rotation so there is a supply all year round. Whenever people have a party, want to eat salad or make coconut tubers pancakes, they just need to call about 20 minutes in advance and he will deliver fresh, crispy, sweet tubers that have just been harvested from the garden.

According to Mr. Dang, the cost of growing coconuts for tubers is very low. Coconuts do not need much water, so even though he grows more than 20,000 trees, he is still quite leisurely. In addition, he also uses coconut leaves as fuel, coconut hulls as substrate for shrimp, plankton, to retain moisture, over time they will decompose and become organic fertilizer for the garden. After achieving the 3-star OCOP standard, his N-Dang coconut tubers product has a company offering a contract of 50kg/day, a large supermarket has also contacted him many times to buy long-term, but he has not dared to accept because he does not have enough supply.

Not keeping the secret to himself, Mr. Dang mobilized the people and young people in the hamlet to grow together. "If one person does it, it will be small, but if many people do it, it will become a brand, have a reputation, and have value," Mr. Dang said. In October 2023, he established the Xeo La B Coconut Growing Cooperative, with 11 members and an area of over 50 hectares. The goal of the cooperative is not only to grow coconuts to sell tubers but also to aim for processed products, linked with eco- tourism , and build a stable raw material area.

DANG LINH

Source: https://baoangiang.com.vn/lap-nghiep-tu-cu-hu-dua-a466247.html