Recently, due to many shortcomings in the management of fertilizers and pesticides, the trade and use of fake and poor quality fertilizers and pesticides have become widespread in the market, affecting crop productivity and quality, causing economic losses to farmers.
Market Management Team No. 3 of Gia Lai province inspects a fertilizer and pesticide business establishment in Ia Dok commune, Duc Co district. (Photo: THU HIEN)
On June 28, the Environmental Police Department of Dak Nong Province Police coordinated with the Inspectorate of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to collect samples of nearly 80 tons of fertilizer produced by Saigon Xanh International Agriculture Joint Stock Company (address at No. 1, Quoc Quang Long An Industrial Park, Ben Luc District, Long An Province) for appraisal according to regulations.
Previously, on June 2, 7 and 14, the Environmental Police Department of Dak Nong Province Police inspected three trucks and five fertilizer dealers, and through the inspection, temporarily seized 79.55 tons of fertilizer produced by Saigon Green International Agriculture Joint Stock Company. According to the appraisal conclusion of the competent authority, all nearly 80 tons of fertilizer produced by Saigon Green International Agriculture Joint Stock Company were fake fertilizers. Currently, the case is being further investigated by the Environmental Police Department of Dak Nong Province Police to clarify and handle according to the provisions of law.
Previously, on April 13, 2023, Market Management Team No. 5, Market Management Department of Tien Giang province coordinated with the Department of Agriculture of Cai Be district to conduct a surprise inspection of an agricultural materials business household in Cai Be district, Tien Giang province. At the time of inspection, the inspection team recorded that the establishment was trading in plant protection drugs but did not list prices, and was trading in fertilizers without a decision to recognize fertilizers for circulation in Vietnam. Taking three fertilizer samples for quality testing, the interdisciplinary force determined that two samples failed; of which, one sample was counterfeit and one sample did not ensure quality. The violating shipment was 3.5 tons of fertilizer worth more than 50 million VND.
After examining and verifying the information, Market Management Team No. 5 completed the dossier and submitted it to the Market Management Department of Tien Giang province for sanction.
These are just two of the cases discovered by the authorities in recent times. In fact, the number of violations in the production and trading of fake and poor quality fertilizers and pesticides has become more complicated and alarming, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Every year, it is estimated that the whole country uses more than 11 million tons of fertilizer. Due to the huge profits, many businesses have imported organic fertilizers, SA, packaged them with ambiguous labels similar to inorganic fertilizers such as DAP, NPK, URE... and sold them at prices equal to or lower than genuine DAP and NPK fertilizers, increasing costs for farmers, while the effects of these ambiguous fertilizers are not as expected.
Mr. Nguyen Van Trung, in Dai Xuyen commune (Phu Xuyen district, Hanoi) shared: "Every time my garden is affected by pests and diseases, I often buy medicine at grocery stores. Once, I bought and used pesticides advertised as high quality, but when sprayed on the plants, the pests and diseases did not improve. After many times of suffering losses due to buying poor quality pesticides, even fake ones, I have gradually lost faith in these products...".
Confused by the market being flooded with low-quality fertilizers and pesticides, even though she is preparing for the upcoming crop, Ms. Hoang Hai, in Cai Lay district (Tien Giang), still cannot help but feel scared when remembering the previous crop, when her family suffered because of fake fertilizers.
Ms. Hai said that her family has more than 2 hectares of rice fields, but in the last crop, they suffered heavy losses because they bought fake fertilizer. "I bought it from a familiar dealer, the fertilizer was the same type that was often used in previous crops. But when it was time to apply it, the rice did not grow, the leaves turned yellow, and the grains were flat. Later, when some engineers came down, they discovered that they had mistakenly bought fake, poor quality fertilizer. At that point, the situation was too bad, so they tried to buy new fertilizer to apply again, but they spent more money and the results were not much," Ms. Hai added.
Mr. Thai Nghiep (Phong Dien district, Can Tho), another victim of fake and poor quality fertilizers, also said: "Farming is already hard work and does not bring much profit, but having to pay interest when buying poor quality fertilizers is really miserable. If this situation is not thoroughly handled or there is no appropriate handling, farmers like us will have to suffer for a long time."
Currently, fake fertilizers and poor quality pesticides have spread throughout provinces and cities, concentrated in the Mekong Delta region, causing farmers to be very worried and confused because the use of poor quality products not only causes damage to agricultural production but also directly affects the economic life and health of many people.
According to the leader of the Vietnam Fertilizer Association, fertilizers and pesticides are indispensable materials in crop production. Every year, millions of farmers have to spend a huge amount of money to buy fertilizers and pesticides, but they themselves cannot determine whether they are fake or real.
The consequences of fake fertilizers are enormous, causing millions of people to fall into debt because of crop damage, low productivity and no money to pay for agricultural supplies. However, currently, the market is still flooded with fake fertilizers and banned pesticides. Many businesses take advantage of people's lack of information and the greed of agents to bring poor quality fertilizers and pesticides to every village. This not only causes damage to farmers but also seriously affects legitimate production enterprises.
To proactively combat and handle violations in the production and trading of fertilizers and pesticides, contributing to protecting the interests of farmers, relevant departments and sectors need to proactively monitor and correctly assess the situation of smuggling, production and trading of fake, counterfeit, poor quality fertilizers and pesticides of unknown origin in each locality.
At the same time, organize inspections and checks of enterprises, establishments and individuals engaged in the production and trading of fertilizers and pesticides that show signs of violations, have had violations or have information and documents on violations to promptly detect and handle violations... Continue to promote propaganda, raise awareness, and guide farmers on how to distinguish between fake and poor quality fertilizers and pesticides... At the same time, encourage organizations and individuals to voluntarily and consciously comply with legal regulations in production and business; proactively announce product quality standards and publicly list and prices of each type of product that farmers need to be aware of in order to responsibly use agricultural supplies. Each farmer should choose to buy products at reputable agricultural supply stores to ensure quality.
HOANG HONG MINH/NHAN DAN NEWSPAPER
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