In the rice fields of Hau Giang province, recently harvested from the 2023-2024 winter-spring crop, the baling and trading of straw is bustling. Bailing machines and motorbikes carrying straw weave through the fields, creating a lively atmosphere. This year, the rice crop was bountiful and prices were good, resulting in a bountiful straw harvest for those in this profession. Reporters from Hau Giang Newspaper captured these moments in the fields.
At this time of year, the rice fields are bustling with activity as numerous straw balers and rice harvesting and gathering machines operate continuously.
Each motorbike carries 5-7 bales of straw, depending on how close or far the field is. The work is hard, but it compensates with an income of about 700,000 VND or more per day.
The straw baling profession is usually done in teams, from harvesting the rice to collecting the straw and clearing the stubble, all done by machine. A team typically consists of about 40 members, each responsible for a different stage of the process.
Rice straw bales are used by locals as feed for buffaloes and cows; for mushroom cultivation; as mulch for fruit trees and vegetables; to improve soil fertility and promote plant growth.
Following the straw cutters, the straw balers operate continuously, creating a lively atmosphere. The bales of straw are transported away as soon as they are produced.
The straw is bundled into neat bales weighing 18-20kg each. Each plot of land yields 12-15 bales of straw, the number varying depending on the density of the straw.
The job of baling straw is quite arduous, so workers have to work at full capacity, from 10 am to around 6 pm, moving from one field to another, continuously throughout the provinces of the Mekong Delta.
Due to the increasing demand for straw, it is in high demand during each rice harvest season, with each bale selling for around 13,000 VND, or even higher depending on transportation conditions and quantity.
Farmers not only earn an additional 50,000 VND per hectare from selling straw but also reduce field cleaning costs. After the straw is baled and transported, the stubble is cut and chopped by machine, preparing it for the new planting season. If the landowner provides the straw for traders to bale themselves, the cost of cutting the stubble is waived.
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