Improving the quality of agricultural cooperatives' operations

Harvesting Thai custard apples at Than Thien Agricultural Cooperative, Thot Not district.

The Department of Agriculture and Environment of Can Tho City has been implementing many programs to promote agricultural cooperatives to transform cultivation, produce agricultural products with competitive advantages in the market and high economic value; at the same time, integrating many programs and projects to support agricultural cooperatives to access capital sources to invest in equipment and machinery, serving the production of goods and agricultural products with safe quality and clear traceability; combining support for cooperatives to build brands, collective labels and link with enterprises to produce goods and agricultural products in a concentrated direction, meeting quality standards, meeting the consumption needs of domestic and foreign markets. Currently, the city has 186 agricultural cooperatives, including many typical cooperatives, producing and trading according to the value chain, with products meeting VietGAP standards or OCOP certification from 3-4 stars... meeting the consumption needs of the domestic and export markets, contributing to increasing the value of agricultural products and income for farmers in cooperatives.

With the support of the city's functional sectors, many agricultural cooperatives in Can Tho City mobilized capital from members, invested in expanding production and business, developed additional services to provide input materials, and strengthened links with businesses that purchase output products for members. A typical example is Than Thien Agricultural Cooperative in Thot Not District, which has actively supported 39 members and more than 100 farming households to convert cultivation and grow crops with high economic value, following market trends. Accordingly, in addition to 59 hectares of members, the cooperative currently has more than 500 hectares of associated land, specializing in growing American corn, vegetable soybeans, and Thai custard apples, etc. to supply partners and businesses inside and outside the city, helping to bring stable income to members and farmers doing business with the cooperative.

Mr. Huynh Van Chien, Director of Than Thien Agricultural Cooperative, said: To help farmers increase their income, the Cooperative has actively supported members and people to cooperate with the Cooperative to convert cultivation, select crops that are both of high economic value and suitable for local soil conditions. At the same time, the Cooperative also creates conditions for farmers to join the Cooperative to participate in training courses on fertilizer use techniques, care, and pest control of vegetables or fruit trees organized by local and city authorities, thereby helping farmers join the Cooperative to improve farming efficiency, reduce production costs, but still ensure that crops achieve productivity and quality according to market requirements. Not only that, the Cooperative also mobilizes members to contribute capital, expands business activities, organizes services to supply fertilizers and pesticides to members and farmers, at prices 5% cheaper than the market; combining the provision of plant varieties and organizing and allocating planting areas to members according to the season, based on the volume and types of agricultural products that the cooperative has signed contracts with partners... Up to now, the agricultural cooperative has the capacity to supply more than 500 tons of fertilizer and pesticides to members and associated households; providing more than 40 tons of various agricultural products per day, bringing high income to farmers.

With the support of the local government, Thoi Trinh Agricultural Cooperative, O Mon District, has not only maintained the safe Ido longan cultivation model, but also linked up with many partners and businesses to consume output for members. Thereby, it helps increase the value of agricultural products and income of gardeners participating in the cooperative. Mr. Nguyen Thanh Nghi, Director of Thoi Trinh Agricultural Cooperative, shared: With the support of the city's Department of Agriculture and local authorities, the Cooperative is increasingly doing well in the steps of cultivation according to VietGAP, to improve the quality and value of agricultural products. At the same time, the Cooperative's Ido longan is also certified as a 3-star OCOP product and the Cooperative is granted a growing area code with over 34 hectares... With the existing advantages, the Cooperative is qualified to sign cooperation agreements with partners and purchasing businesses inside and outside the city, at prices higher than the market, helping to bring a stable source of income for gardeners in the Cooperative. According to Mr. Nghi, the cooperative currently has nearly 60 members with over 57 hectares of land specializing in growing Ido longan, with a total harvest yield of 800-1,000 tons/crop/year; it is estimated that each member household in the cooperative has 6,000 square meters of land growing longan, with a harvest yield of 1-1.3 tons/cong (1,000 square meters), with the current selling price of 20,000 VND/kg, it will bring farmers an income of over 150 million VND/crop.

With the support of the city, creating conditions for agricultural cooperatives to develop production, in accordance with the advantages of each locality, many cooperatives have proactively applied new farming methods, applied science and technology to produce agricultural products according to VietGAP or OCOP standards... to meet market demand. Along with that, many cooperatives are also proactive in organizing a variety of support services for members, becoming a bridge to support farmers in production and consumption of agricultural products... However, in order for agricultural cooperatives to maximize their role in leading farmers, building a value chain from production to consumption, the city's functional branches need to strengthen the implementation of support programs, organize training to improve management and operation capacity for cooperatives. In particular, support cooperatives to access policies on capital and science and technology so that cooperatives have enough resources to invest in developing production and business and expanding the market effectively; Support agricultural cooperatives to link with businesses according to the value chain model, thereby not only helping agricultural cooperatives increase their operational capacity, but also contributing to promoting and developing the value chain of key agricultural products of localities.

Article and photos: MY HOA

Source: https://baocantho.com.vn/nang-chat-hoat-dong-cho-hop-tac-xa-nong-nghiep-a186728.html