We visited Chiềng Khoi commune, Yên Châu district, and witnessed the joy of the sugarcane farmers. Vast sugarcane fields were being harvested by the local people, with convoys of trucks transporting the sugarcane to the Mai Sơn Sugar Factory.
In the sugarcane fields of Hiem village, the rustling sound of sugarcane harvesting, mixed with the chatter and laughter, makes the atmosphere of the sugarcane harvest season even more vibrant.
Mr. Lu Van Thanh, from Hiem village, is busily bundling sugarcane stalks and loading them onto a truck with others. Taking a break, Mr. Thanh said: "My family has been growing sugarcane for several seasons now. In previous years, there was plenty of rain and enough water, so the yield was about 100 tons/ha. This year, there was less rain, so the yield is lower, 70-80 tons/ha. With 3 hectares of sugarcane, my family expects to get about 220 tons this year. Currently, Mai Son Sugarcane Factory is buying it at 1,050 VND/kg, after deducting expenses, we will earn about 170 million VND."
On another sugarcane hill in Hiem village, Ms. Lo Thi Dong excitedly said: "My family is focusing on harvesting sugarcane to meet the deadline for selling to the factory. If we don't harvest in time, the sugarcane will flower, and the sugar content will decrease significantly, meaning the selling price will drop. This season, although the sugarcane yield is lower, the factory's purchase price is high, so the sugarcane growers are very happy. This Tet holiday, the villagers will have a happier and more prosperous celebration. Next year, my family will continue to expand the area planted with sugarcane. With the advantage of being able to keep the roots for 3 to 4 years, we don't need to spend much on seedlings and labor. Especially, the purchase price of sugarcane has been stable for the past few years, and the company guarantees the purchase, so we don't have to worry about the market. Therefore, we are confident in developing sugarcane cultivation."
Mr. Lo Van Bon, Party Secretary and Head of Hiem Village, said: Hiem Village has 240 hectares of agricultural land, of which 140 hectares are sugarcane, and the rest is fruit trees, including mangoes, longan, pomelo, apples, and other crops. During the sugarcane harvest season, families here form labor exchange groups, with about 10-15 families forming one group, each family having 2 people. Then, the groups take turns harvesting sugarcane for each family, so the sugarcane harvest is very quick and on time.
Thanks to sugarcane cultivation, the lives of the villagers have become stable, and many households have escaped poverty. The villagers actively participate in building a new rural area, voluntarily contributing 100 million VND to build a village cultural center; and contributing 1.2 billion VND to build 2 km of concrete roads within the village. There are no longer any poor households in the village.
Currently, Chiềng Khoi commune has over 1,000 hectares of agricultural land. Of this, 303 hectares are planted with sugarcane, yielding over 25,000 tons and generating nearly 25 billion VND in revenue. Sugarcane cultivation is not only suitable for the soil and climate but also creates jobs and provides income for local people. The value of harvested products on cultivated land is estimated at nearly 57 million VND/hectare. The average income of people reaches 43.5 million VND/person/year. The goal is to reduce the multidimensional poverty rate according to the poverty standard for the 2021-2025 period to below 4%.
Ms. Lo Thi Phuong, Chairwoman of the People's Committee of Chieng Khoi commune, said: Sugarcane is one of the cash crops that creates jobs and brings high economic efficiency to local people. The commune actively cooperates with Son La Sugarcane Joint Stock Company to build raw material areas and establish sustainable production and consumption chains. We are reviewing areas of crops with low economic efficiency to convert them to sugarcane cultivation linked to processing plants, creating motivation to encourage people in the commune to produce with confidence. We are also mobilizing and guiding farmers to apply technical solutions to increase crop yield and quality to improve economic efficiency.
Chieng Khoi aims to promote the development of concentrated, specialized commodity production areas, including sugarcane, contributing to the successful achievement of socio-economic development goals in the locality.
Minh Tuan
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