Good news for Thanh Hoa agriculture

Vietnamese agriculture cannot continue to compete on the basis of low costs, labor-intensive practices, and reliance on resources. Instead, it must shift from agricultural production to an agricultural economy . This is an issue that has been raised at several recent conferences and seminars.

As a province with a large agricultural area and a large farming population, how is Thanh Hoa adapting to this trend?

During discussions at the 37th meeting of the Provincial Party Committee, 19th term, recently held, the Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Cao Van Cuong, stated that in 2024, Thanh Hoa's agriculture sector had seen a shift from agricultural production to agricultural economics. Specifically, in the field of crop cultivation, the area of ​​glutinous rice increased by 4,500 hectares compared to the same period; the area of ​​high-quality non-glutinous rice increased by 2,000 hectares; and the area of ​​ordinary non-glutinous rice decreased by 6,800 hectares. Two enterprises in Thanh Hoa have received export orders for rice with a volume of approximately 35,000 tons. The output of timber from planted forests increased by 13%, meeting export orders for wood products.

For generations, the mindset of farmers has been deeply ingrained in their thinking: a reactive, market-driven approach to agricultural production, coupled with a willingness to drastically and brutally intervene in crop and livestock farming to achieve immediate goals. This represents a significant waste and a destruction of the future. Thanh Hoa province, with its vast agricultural and rural areas, exacerbates this waste.

Awakening the potential of the land, increasing production value per unit area, and focusing on producing high-value-added goods that the market demands is a crucial step in moving away from the mindset of traditional agricultural production and entering a larger, more demanding arena: agricultural economics. This empowers farmers as the main actors and proactive participants. This means producers are no longer passively following trends; the agricultural sector shifts from seeking markets to researching them, aiming towards a market-driven agricultural model, as outlined in Resolution No. 19-NQ/TW dated June 16, 2022, of the 13th Central Committee on agriculture, farmers, and rural areas to 2030, with a vision to 2045: Developing efficient, sustainable, and multi-value-integrated agriculture towards increasing added value and competitiveness. This involves a strong shift in thinking from agricultural production to developing an agricultural economy linked to market demand.

Agricultural economic thinking can be understood as the efficient use of limited agricultural resources to produce products that meet market demands and achieve the highest possible profits. Thanh Hoa's agriculture has taken the first steps to keep pace with this trend, which is very encouraging. However, to further define Thanh Hoa's agricultural economy, in addition to the involvement of the agricultural sector, as the Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development stated, they will promote solutions to encourage large-scale, clean production meeting VietGAP and GlobalGAP standards to increase the production of standard raw materials and boost exports; encourage the continued expansion of sugarcane growing areas to supply raw materials for the two processing plants; and promote the linkage of fruit and vegetable production to stabilize product output. To effectively control diseases in livestock and poultry, and to ensure environmental protection and sustainable production in large-scale livestock projects, relevant authorities must have a systematic strategy of communication and training, attracting high-quality personnel to further accelerate the process of educating farmers. Farmers are the key players in agriculture; only when farmers change will the value of agriculture change.

Tue Minh

Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/tin-hieu-vui-cho-nong-nghiep-thanh-hoa-232229.htm