The fertile land along the Tra Khuc River in Thanh Khiet village (Nghia Ha commune, Quang Ngai city) is very favorable for agricultural cultivation. In addition to leafy vegetables, farmers in this area also grow a considerable amount of chili peppers.
In recent days, Mr. and Mrs. Nguyen Phung from Thanh Khiet village have been going to the fields from early morning to harvest the early-ripening chili pepper crop of the 2024-2025 winter-spring season to sell to traders.
A facility that purchases fresh chili peppers for processing and packaging. Photo: Van Ha.
Bird's eye chili peppers are priced at 68,000 VND/kg, bringing huge profits to farmers despite crop failure.“This year, the weather has been bad, with prolonged cold rain, so the chili peppers have grown slowly and are underdeveloped. Prices were quite high at the beginning of the season, but they dropped quickly. I sold in two batches; the first batch fetched 60,000 VND/kg, while the second only sold for 35,000 VND/kg. Some farmers in the commune managed to sell their chili peppers around the beginning of March 2025 at prices exceeding 70,000 VND/kg,” Mr. Phung shared.
Currently, chili peppers are not yet in their peak harvest season, while the market is volatile, with prices fluctuating daily, leaving farmers anxiously watching.
Notably, after the price of chili peppers halved in early April 2025, it unexpectedly rose again to 70,000 VND/kg. Many believe that the price of chili peppers is likely to continue increasing because both the planted area and yield this year have decreased compared to last year.
Chili prices are soaring, but people are still worried. Photo: Van Ha.
“For five or six consecutive years, chili prices have plummeted, resulting in no profit, so this year I only planted about two acres. Last year, I planted four acres, but during the peak harvest season, the price was only 4,000-5,000 VND/kg, and the harvesting costs were high, so I abandoned the crop and let anyone who wanted to harvest it do so. This year, many people have also reduced their planting area for fear of losses. This might also be the reason why chili prices will be more favorable,” shared Mr. Nguyen Huu Quan, a chili farmer in Thanh Khiet village.
According to calculations, the cost of planting one sao (500m2) of chili peppers, including labor and fertilizer, is about 5 million VND, while hiring laborers for harvesting costs 200,000 - 250,000 VND per person per day. Each worker can only harvest a maximum of about 30kg per day.
On average, each plot of land yields about 900 kg to 1 ton of chili peppers. For farmers to cover their costs and pay harvesters, the price of chili peppers needs to be at least 15,000 VND/kg; to make a profit, the price must range from 25,000 to 30,000 VND/kg.
After harvesting, chili peppers are collected by wholesalers for preliminary processing, sorting, and packaging before being shipped for consumption. According to some chili purchasing facilities in Nghia Ha commune, the main market for chili peppers has long been export to China, and they are almost entirely dependent on this market.
In years when the Chinese market has strong demand, chili prices skyrocket. Conversely, when China turns its back, chili farmers in Quang Ngai suffer heavy losses.
Residents of Nghia Ha commune, Quang Ngai city, harvest chili peppers. Photo: Van Ha.
Most recently, like last year, Quang Ngai province planted over 1,400 hectares of chili peppers, concentrated in areas such as Binh Duong and Binh Minh communes (Binh Son district); Nghia Dung and Nghia Ha communes (Quang Ngai city)... However, the price of chili peppers at the beginning of the season plummeted, falling to only 9,000 - 10,000 VND/kg, and even remaining below 5,000 VND for a long time, causing many people to suffer heavy losses.
To help farmers sell their chili peppers, some traders buy fresh peppers and freeze them, waiting for the Chinese market to recover and then seeking new markets such as South Korea and Japan. However, these new markets require high product quality, strict inspection procedures, and much lower consumption volumes compared to the Chinese market.
To avoid the situation of "bumper harvest, low prices; high prices, poor harvest," where supply exceeds demand, for many years, local authorities and relevant agencies in Quang Ngai have advised farmers not to increase the area planted with chili peppers indiscriminately to chase fluctuating prices.
Source: https://nongnghiep.vn/phap-phong-gia-ot-d747350.html
![OCOP during Tet season: [Article 4] Elevating local products](https://vphoto.vietnam.vn/thumb/402x226/vietnam/resource/IMAGE/2026/01/29/1769652810578_2935-z6982071462129_649e82db06fb2f2ea701388b1f5f5b0b-173322_176-185229-202804_457.jpeg)
Comment (0)