The one who keeps honey on Hop Thanh land

Mr. Ma Van Ha shares his experience in beekeeping with people in Hop Thanh commune (Phu Luong).

Born and raised in a farming family, Mr. Ma Van Ha understands the hardships and uncertainties of farmers. About 20 years ago, while many people were still struggling with traditional fields and gardens, he was quick to learn the model of beekeeping for honey to improve his life. Initially, he only kept 5-10 bee colonies. Due to lack of experience, all the bees left.

Not discouraged, Mr. Ha proactively visited many honey beekeeping models in and outside the province; actively participated in training courses; learned knowledge from books, newspapers, television, etc.

In 2020, after accumulating enough experience, Mr. Ha expanded his bee colony to 200 colonies. Each year, he harvests about 3,000 liters of honey, earning nearly 400 million VND. According to Mr. Ha, bees often suffer from rot disease. Farmers need to pay attention to observe, detect early and handle promptly so that the bee colony will develop healthily.

Not stopping at developing the family economy, Mr. Ha always believes that "If you want to go far, you have to go together". Therefore, in 2023, he established the Hop Thanh Honey Cooperative with 7 members, with himself as the Director. He and the members invested in a water separator (worth more than 100 million VND), helping to improve the quality of honey and extend the preservation time.

At the same time, with the support of the district's professional departments, he also actively designed packaging, labels, traceability stamps... to enhance value and build product brands. Also in 2023, the honey products of Hop Thanh Honey Cooperative were recognized as 3-star OCOP, known and ordered by many customers. On average, each year, the Cooperative produces and sells about 4.5 tons of honey to the market, with an average selling price of 180-200 thousand VND/liter.

Not only is he a “leader”, Mr. Ha is also a dedicated teacher. Mr. Luong Thanh Phuong, a member of Hop Thanh Honey Cooperative, shared: “In the past, I raised bees based on experience, so the economic efficiency was low. After joining the cooperative, Mr. Ha gave me detailed instructions on how to divide the colony, create queen caps, and breeding techniques… Currently, I have multiplied my bee colony to 50 colonies; each year I sell about 350 liters of honey and earn more than 45 million VND.”

With a passion for animal husbandry, wherever he goes and sees any interesting model, Mr. Ma Van Ha always asks very carefully about how to raise, prevent, and treat diseases for livestock, and the economic efficiency it brings...

Mr. Ma Van Ha's family is raising 25 deer to exploit velvet antlers and sell baby deer.

During a visit to a deer farming cooperative in Phu Binh district, Mr. Ha was impressed with this model and decided to invest over 300 million VND to buy 13 mature deer (weighing 70-100kg/deer) to raise. From the initial 13 deer, the herd has now grown to 25 deer, of which 10 are being cut for velvet and 10 are in the breeding period.

According to Mr. Ha, deer are easy to raise, rarely get sick, and their main food is green vegetables and natural grass. Every year, he harvests 7kg of deer antlers, with a selling price of 20 million VND/kg, not including the sale of young deer. Every time the deer antlers are cut, they are all ordered by customers.

In addition, to make the most of the garden area, Mr. Ha also raises about 100 jungle fowls (a small, wild chicken breed with firm meat...). After 6-7 months of raising, the chickens reach a weight of 0.7-1kg, Mr. Ha sells them for 300,000 VND/rooster and 200,000 VND/hen.

It can be seen that with a spirit of eagerness to learn, innovative thinking and determination to get rich, Mr. Ma Van Ha is not only a typical example in family economic development but also an inspiration for local farmers to rise up together.

Source: https://baothainguyen.vn/kinh-te/202505/nguoi-cat-mat-ngottren-dat-hop-thanh-0d12704/