Bountiful winter-spring rice harvest

Currently, farmers in the province are entering the peak harvest season for the 2022-2023 winter-spring rice crop. Throughout the province, images of golden rice fields, heavy with grain, and the radiant smiles of the farmers can be seen everywhere.

Rarely seen high productivity

In the sweltering summer heat, the atmosphere of the winter-spring rice harvest remains bustling and lively. Combine harvesters tirelessly move from one field to another, helping farmers reduce strenuous labor. In Cung field (Ninh My commune, Hoa Lu district), a large number of farmers are waiting at the edge of the field with sacks and carts, just waiting for the combine harvesters to finish harvesting so they can take the rice home to dry.

Mr. Pham Van Truong (Nhan Ly village) happily shared: "There has never been a year with such a 'healthy' rice crop as this year. The weather has been very favorable, with few pests and diseases. The rice only had a slight blast infection during the heading stage, but I hired a plane to spray pesticides and it was all gone. The weather was sunny and warm when the rice was flowering, and it's been dry until now, so there's no loss. Although I haven't measured it precisely yet, I'm sure the yield will be at least 2 quintals per sao (approximately 200 kg per 1000 square meters)."

Mr. Le Van Duc also couldn't hide his joy: "This season, my family planted 3 acres, mainly the Glutinous Rice 97 variety. We've only harvested half, but the yield will increase by one truckload of rice compared to last year. In general, we farmers are very happy because all our hard work under the sun and rain has paid off." Not only in Hoa Lu district, but the winter-spring rice crop in Yen Khanh district is also thriving.

In the rice paddies jointly cultivated by Kien Thai Agricultural Cooperative (Khanh Trung commune) with Hong Quang Agricultural Supplies Company and Cuong Tan Co., Ltd., producing glutinous rice varieties such as Nep Huong, Huong Binh, and Huong Com, the rice plants are neatly arranged like a carpet. Mr. Dinh Van Thuyet, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Cooperative, said: "This year's rice harvest is bountiful. Some varieties, like Huong Binh, achieved a record yield of 2.8-2.9 quintals/sao (1 sao = 360 square meters), while others averaged 2.5-2.6 quintals/sao, with the lowest yield still exceeding 2 quintals/sao. This success is partly due to favorable weather conditions, and partly because for the past three years we have shifted to organic farming, which has improved and restored the soil, creating favorable conditions for the rice plants to grow and develop well, resulting in high yields."

It is known that, thanks to production linkages with companies, farmers in Kien Thai Cooperative, as well as many other cooperatives, can sell fresh rice right in the fields without the need for drying. With a good harvest and stable prices, the farmers are all very happy.

Complete victory

During the 2022-2023 winter-spring crop season, the entire province planted 39,554.4 hectares of rice, mainly in the late spring crop, with a structure of 80% pure rice and 20% hybrid rice. As of May 31st, nearly 16,300 hectares had been harvested (reaching 41% of the total area).

Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Tuan, Deputy Head of the Provincial Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection, said: "Through field inspections and assessments from localities, it has been shown that this year's winter-spring crop has yielded a good harvest in both early and late spring varieties, with estimated yields higher than the 2021-2022 winter-spring crop. This success is due not only to favorable weather conditions for rice growth and development but also to the increased application of advancements in seeds, fertilizers, and cultivation techniques. In particular, there has been focused and coordinated guidance from the province to the grassroots level to ensure production plans, especially the correct implementation of planting schedules, cropping patterns, rice varieties, and technical measures to cope with weather fluctuations and pest outbreaks."

According to Mr. Tuan, the success of this year's winter-spring rice crop is not simply about yield, but also reflects the inherent aspects of the production process. Specifically, in this season, localities in the province have strongly shifted from direct seeding to transplanting, bringing the proportion of transplanted rice to 50% of the total cultivated area.

In particular, thanks to the policy supporting agricultural machinery according to Resolution No. 32/2022/NQ-HĐND dated July 15, 2022, of the Provincial People's Council, many agricultural cooperatives and farmers have boldly registered to apply and expand the area of machine-planted rice. The total area of machine-planted rice in this season reached more than 2,000 hectares, thereby significantly reducing the use of herbicides, lowering production costs; contributing to solving seasonal labor pressure, minimizing the spread of weeds, and improving rice yield and quality.

Furthermore, the 2022-2023 winter-spring crop also saw a significant increase in the area of high-quality specialty rice production using organic farming methods, with product buyback agreements with companies and businesses. This gradually transforms production towards a market-oriented approach, increasing income and improving the lives of farmers. This is the core of a successful harvest, because the current challenge for the rice industry is no longer quantity but quality.

Drawing on lessons learned from previous rice harvests, local authorities in the province are currently encouraging farmers to take advantage of favorable weather conditions and apply mechanization to quickly harvest ripe rice crops, following the principle of "better to harvest while still green than to let it rot in the field," to avoid losses caused by weather, pests, and rats. Simultaneously, they are urgently preparing the necessary conditions for the next production season.

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