Sweet and fragrant rice grains from the fields of Cat Tien

A unique rice-growing cooperative, with high-quality rice paddies. That is the Trung Thanh Rice Cooperative, which specializes in cultivating the fragrant and sweet ST25 rice variety.

Harvesting rice seeds in wet fields.

Planting rice seeds instead of commercial rice

Ms. Pham Thi Oanh, Director of Trung Thanh Agricultural and Service Cooperative in Cat Tien 3 commune, shared that, originating from the rice-growing region of Cat Tien, the farmers of Trung Thanh Cooperative chose a different path: producing rice seeds. This path has brought stable income to the residents of this low-lying area.

“Our Trung Thanh Cooperative has 26 members and is linked with 50 other farming households. We cultivate over 100 hectares, mainly growing rice seeds under contract with businesses. We rarely grow rice for consumption or commercial purposes; we primarily cultivate high-quality rice seeds, specifically varieties like HG12, ST24, and ST25,” Ms. Pham Thi Oanh informed.

Originating from members of a rice-growing cooperative in the Cat Tien 3 area, Trung Thanh Cooperative was established with the goal of concentrating its strength and signing contracts for rice seed cultivation. “Growing rice seeds yields better income, and working under contract ensures stability. When cooperating with businesses, individual farmers cannot produce alone; they must form a cooperative to enhance linkages and meet large-scale orders,” Ms. Oanh affirmed. She also added that, previously, the members all had experience growing rice for consumption, so when growing rice seeds, they quickly grasped the production process.

Growing rice for seed requires a more meticulous process, from soil preparation to pesticides and fertilizers. While rice for consumption takes 100 days to cultivate, rice for seed requires 115-120 days, according to Ms. Oanh. Although growing rice for seed is more demanding than growing rice for consumption, the contracts signed with businesses provide farmers with greater stability, ensuring better income and eliminating market uncertainties.

Mechanization of the rice industry

"Actually, rice farming doesn't yield high income if done individually, relying on manual labor for all stages of production. To achieve higher income and reduce labor costs, we have to concentrate on large-scale farming and mechanize all production processes," assessed Ms. Pham Thi Oanh.

Currently, with an area of ​​over 100 hectares, concentrated into large fields, Trung Thanh Cooperative has mechanized most of its production. “The cooperative uses drones for sowing, spraying pesticides, and fertilizing, and combine harvesters for harvesting. We purchased high-capacity drones costing nearly 400 million VND to serve production,” shared Mr. Tran Duc Trung, a technician operating the machines at the cooperative. Mr. Trung assessed that sowing rice with drones reduces labor and seed usage. The processes of building embankments, spraying pesticides, and harvesting by machine also achieve five times higher productivity compared to manual methods. Especially with combine harvesters, farmers obtain clean rice grains, and the straw is neatly arranged for sale to other units.

With mechanization, fertilizers, pesticides, and proper cultivation techniques, the rice seeds grown by Trung Thanh Cooperative achieve yields of 7-8 quintals/acre/year. With seed prices exceeding 1,000 VND/kg, farmers increase their income by 15-20% compared to growing rice for consumption.

Trung Thanh Cooperative is an active member of the Provincial Cooperative Union, choosing its own path in rice seed production. This is an effective collective production model in the Cat Tien rice-growing region, according to Ms. Dinh Thi Hanh, Vice President of the Provincial Cooperative Union. Ms. Hanh also stated that to help the cooperative secure additional investment capital, the Cooperative Union has provided a loan of 500 million VND to purchase machinery, implement mechanization, and increase the productivity and quality of Cat Tien branded rice seeds.

Source: https://baolamdong.vn/ngot-thom-hat-lua-บน-dong-dat-cat-tien-427747.html