Khuon Lung people have extra income from drying peeled boards.

BHG - If the weather is favorable, people can earn 150,000 - 200,000 VND per day from drying peeled boards. Although it is not a job that brings high income, but with its stable nature and no professional qualifications required, drying peeled boards has helped people in Khuon Lung commune (Xin Man) improve their lives.

Peeled plywood is an important raw material in the plywood industry, peeled from planted forest trees such as acacia and eucalyptus. After being brought to workshops in the commune, the boards will be thinly peeled by machine and transferred to households to dry before being pressed. This is the stage that many families in Khuon Lung commune are undertaking. Mr. Hoang Van Minh, a resident of Trung Thanh village, shared: I am almost 60 years old this year, I can no longer do heavy work. Before, I mainly worked in the fields, I had income during the season, but I didn't know what else to do in my free time. Since there are peeled plywood workshops in the commune, I have been drying plywood. This job helps me have a steady income every day.

Mr. Hoang Van Minh has extra income from drying peeled boards.

Normally, each peeled board is often damp and needs to be dried in the sun to reach the standard dryness before being put into production. Peeled board processing factories are responsible for transporting fresh boards and delivering them to households for drying. From vacant lots, people build wooden stakes about 1 meter high and dry the peeled boards to make the process as quick as possible. The boards are dried evenly on both sides in the sun for about 1-2 days depending on weather conditions, then returned to the purchasing facility. An advantage of this is that it does not require much professional skills or investment in machinery, and people do not have to transport them. The elderly, women, and even students on summer vacation can all help. Although the work requires meticulousness to avoid warping the boards, it is not too hard. In particular, people can take advantage of their yard or vacant land to make a drying area, without having to go far.

Mr. Hoang Ngoc Chung, Trung Thanh village said: Due to poor health, I cannot work far away. So I signed up to dry peeled boards for workshops in the area. Income is calculated based on the volume of peeled boards dried, each block the workshop owner pays from 120,000 - 150,000 VND. After drying, just arrange each peeled board neatly and have the workshop's vehicle come to transport it. When all the peeled boards are gone, the workshop owner sends a vehicle to transport fresh boards to the households. If it is sunny, the boards dry quickly, each day I can earn from 150,000 - 200,000 VND, enough to cover daily expenses.

Currently, in Khuon Lung commune, there are about 30 households participating in drying peeled boards every day. Depending on the number of boards received each day from the peeling workshops and whether the weather is favorable or not, a household can earn an average income of 3 to 5 million VND per month. Especially in the dry season, when production demand increases, the amount of boards that need to be dried is larger and will provide regular jobs for farmers. Peeling workshops in the area also benefit, because hiring local people to dry helps reduce the cost of hiring permanent workers, and also helps solve the problem of employment for people. Some families have boldly invested in expanding the drying area, receiving more boards to increase production.

Khuon Lung Commune is a locality with strengths in forestry development, with nearly 500 hectares of planted forests with trees such as acacia, cinnamon, and linden. Vice Chairwoman of Khuon Lung Commune People's Committee Hoang Thi Hung said: Drying peeled plywood is suitable for local labor conditions. Since the peeled plywood processing workshops have been established in the commune, people have had more work to do. Not only creating jobs and increasing income, this work is also closely linked to the local forestry value chain.

Article and photos: Van Long

Source: https://baohagiang.vn/kinh-te/202505/nguoi-dan-khuon-lung-co-them-thu-nhap-tu-phoi-van-boc-c2a13d3/