Sugarcane billionaires in Pờ Tó

(GLO) - Despite facing numerous difficulties, many farmers remain committed to sugarcane cultivation and have developed large-scale sugarcane fields. Thanks to the introduction of mechanization into production, sugarcane farming has helped many households in Pờ Tó (Ia Pa district, Gia Lai province) become millionaires.

Billionaire on barren land

We had a business trip to Pờ Tó commune – a revolutionary base during the two national resistance wars. From a "dead land" devastated by war, Pờ Tó today is transforming day by day, developing with spacious multi-story houses and smooth concrete roads. The once barren fields are now covered in a lush green of sugarcane, cassava, and tobacco.

No one can deny that among the local traditional crops, sugarcane has always been considered a poverty-alleviating crop, helping local farmers to earn a living. To date, Pờ Tó has become the main raw material area for AgriS Gia Lai Agricultural Joint Stock Company with an area of ​​2,352 hectares.

Mr. Nguyen Nhu Lieu (far left, husband of Ms. Nguyen Thi Lieu, village 3, Po To commune) next to his sugarcane plantation in Attapeu province, Laos (photo provided by the subject).

Having dedicated 19 years to sugarcane farming, Ms. Nguyen Thi Lieu and her husband (from Hamlet 3) now own 90 hectares, earning billions of dong annually. Their spacious Thai-style house, located opposite the Pờ Tó Commune People's Committee office, stands as a testament to the family's successful sugarcane harvests. Looking at their current impressive property, few would guess that the couple rose from humble beginnings.

After getting married and moving out on their own in 2006, she received 6 sao (approximately 0.6 hectares) of farmland from her parents. With advice and guidance from relatives, they chose sugarcane cultivation as their starting point. Back then, all the work had to be done manually. To care for the sugarcane field, the couple would wake up at dawn and return home after dark. However, due to the barren soil, the sugarcane yield was only about 4 tons per sao. With a selling price of 650-700 thousand dong per ton (10 Brix), the family only earned an average profit of 1.5 million dong per sao.

The couple pooled all their savings to buy more farmland. She also considered cultivating other crops like cassava, tobacco, and rice, but after discussing it with her husband, sugarcane remained their final choice.

Ms. Lieu shared: Compared to other crops, sugarcane is best adapted to both drought and prolonged rainy weather. More importantly, sugarcane farming eliminates concerns about sales, as AgriS Gia Lai Agricultural Joint Stock Company purchases the sugarcane directly from the farm and pays immediately upon delivery to the processing plant. This is also the reason why, during the 2018-2020 period, even when raw sugarcane prices dropped sharply, her family remained determined to continue farming. Instead of replacing sugarcane with cassava, she decided to introduce mechanization into production, using increased productivity to offset lower prices, thus avoiding losses.

“Currently, each hectare of sugarcane yields an average of 90-100 tons, sometimes reaching 120 tons. With the stable purchase price of raw sugarcane from AgriS Gia Lai Agricultural Joint Stock Company at 1.1 million VND/ton of 10 Brix, after deducting expenses, my family earns a profit of 40 million VND/ha; at the same time, it provides regular employment for 10 local laborers with an income of 6-7 million VND/month. Thanks to sugarcane, my family has been able to build a spacious house and give our children a good education,” Ms. Lieu said excitedly.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Lieu (village 3, Po To commune) invested in 3 large tractors to cultivate 90 hectares of sugarcane for her family. Photo: Vu Chi

Having been involved with sugarcane farming for over 20 years, Mr. Nguyen Cong Bang (from Hamlet 4) has experienced two periods of ups and downs with this crop. These were the periods of 1999-2000 and 2018-2020. During those times, not only did the price of raw sugarcane plummet, but the slow pace of factory purchasing caused him heavy losses. Many sugarcane fields had to be destroyed to make way for the next crop. Despite this, he remains loyal to sugarcane farming for many reasons.

He recounted: Leaving his hometown of Hung Yen to settle in Po To in 1989, sugarcane cultivation helped his family and many other households in the commune escape poverty. He felt guilty abandoning the raw material source just because of immediate difficulties, towards the factory and the nearly ten families who regularly worked for him.

Mr. Bang shared: “Having spent half our lives consolidating and redistributing land, my wife and I now own nearly 40 hectares of sugarcane land, earning over 1 billion VND per year. Now, in our sixties, our health has deteriorated, so my wife and I plan to work for a few more years and then divide the land equally among our children so we can enjoy our old age.”

"Living healthily" with sugarcane

According to Mr. Bang, sugarcane cultivation is not simply about applying theory; it requires experience, accumulated knowledge from practice, and training courses. Mr. Bang believes that the most important aspects of sugarcane cultivation are deep plowing, soil preparation, selecting good varieties, and treating sugarcane cuttings before planting to eliminate diseases.

Furthermore, to thrive with sugarcane farming, comprehensive mechanization is an inevitable trend. With a large sugarcane plantation, the couple invested in various types of machinery for production, from plows and planting machines to sprayers, weeders, fertilizer trucks, and sugarcane cutters. However, the irrigation issue remains a concern for him, and despite numerous requests to relevant authorities, it has yet to be resolved.

Thanks to the application of mechanization in production, sugarcane farmers save time and effort, increasing crop yields. Photo: Vu Chi

Mr. Bang analyzed: If using machinery, 10 hectares of sugarcane can be harvested in one day, but if done manually, the same area could take up to a week. With a stable water supply, not only sugarcane but all crops in the area would yield significantly higher productivity, improving farmers' income. However, this is not a problem that can be solved overnight. To address the irrigation issue, Mr. Bang is installing a drip irrigation system to save water, reduce fertilizer use, and increase crop yields.

For Ms. Lieu's family, despite having the largest sugarcane plantation in the commune, they are still striving every day to develop this crop. Two years ago, following the policy of expanding the raw material area of ​​AgriS Gia Lai Agricultural Joint Stock Company, Mr. Nguyen Nhu Lieu (Ms. Lieu's husband) and 10 other villagers pioneered the export of sugarcane cultivation in Attapeu province (Laos). He is currently leasing 100 hectares of land to cultivate sugarcane there.

According to Mr. Lieu, although the farming practices of the people in this area are still relatively backward, thanks to the contiguous land area, climate, and soil similar to Vietnam, it is quite favorable for production.

“This is a very meaningful program. We have had the opportunity to share our farming experience with the people of our neighboring country, strengthening solidarity and close ties between the two countries, while also increasing our family income. We hope that in the future, the company will have more preferential policies and closely cooperate with the people on a mutually beneficial basis to sustainably develop the raw material area,” Mr. Lieu shared.

In 2024, Pờ Tó commune had 350 households achieving the title of excellent producers and business operators at various levels; including 50 at the provincial level, 100 at the district level, and 200 at the commune level. Mr. Nguyen Viet Chung, Chairman of the Farmers' Association of the commune, said: "In recent years, the movement of farmers excelling in production and business, uniting to help each other get rich and sustainably reduce poverty has developed both in breadth and depth."

Families like Mr. Bang's and Ms. Lieu's are exemplary households recognized at the provincial and district levels for their outstanding achievements in production and business from 2021 to the present. Not only are they hardworking and diligent, but they are also pioneering farmers who apply science and technology to production, daring to think, daring to act, and daring to change, not only enriching their families but also contributing to the socio-economic development of their localities.

Source: https://baogialai.com.vn/nhung-ty-phu-mia-o-po-to-post322692.html