Sustainable wealthy village
I visited the fruit-growing area of Ro Mo, Hamlet 10, Nam Thanh Commune in mid-October. To get there, from the administrative center of the "land of a thousand flowers" province or from the "blue sea" region of Phan Thiet, one has to travel more than 170 km. Ro Mo has been famous as a fruit-growing area for many years; many people say that the Ro Mo fruit brand existed before the liberation when farmers first cleared the land to plant fruit trees. Ro Mo is located on a high plateau amidst interwoven hills, more than 10 km from the administrative center of Nam Thanh Commune. The hamlet is quite isolated from other areas, so it has a mild climate due to the weather influence from the Di Linh plateau. Thanks to the good climate and the nutrient-rich red basalt soil, the crops here thrive, and the quality of the fruit is therefore much better than in many other regions.
Mr. Tran Cong Hoi, Secretary of the Party Branch of Hamlet 10, took me on a tour of the orchards in the hamlet. The durians had already been harvested, leaving behind lush green avocado trees with fruit hanging from the branches. The avocados are grown out of season, according to export standards, so the selling price is quite high, over 40,000 VND/kg at the farm. Mr. Hoi recounted: “About 15 years ago, Ro Mo was famous for its sweet tangerines, longan, mangosteen, and Thai jackfruit, but when the prices of longan and tangerines dropped, most people switched to growing durian. Hamlet 10 has 86 permanent households, mostly engaged in farming, but everyone is well-off or wealthy. There are no poor or near-poor households in the hamlet. In particular, many households in the hamlet are farmers who have achieved excellent production and business results at the commune and provincial levels.” Mr. Tran Cong Hoi, despite being young (born in 1981), started his orchard in Ro Mo in 1996 and currently has 6 hectares of durian trees in production, earning a net profit of no less than 3 billion VND per year.
In conversation with me, Mr. Vo Van Loc – former village head, former Party branch secretary, exemplary figure in the fruit tree planting movement, and a provincial-level outstanding farmer in production and business in 2020 – said that he is currently cultivating 5 hectares of durian, earning a profit of 3-4 billion VND per year. Sitting next to him were Mr. Doan Van Nhan and Mr. Nguyen Thuy, also provincial-level outstanding farmers in production and business, each with 10 hectares of durian, earning an annual profit of no less than 6 billion VND from durian.
To achieve the high-quality, specialized fruit-growing region that generates billions of dong in income today, farmers have also gone through many hardships in their profession. Farmers not only have to persevere with the crops, investing time and money, but they must also be sensitive to market mechanisms. Mr. Duc, from Sung Nhon 2 village, Nam Thanh commune, who specializes in buying and supplying agricultural products to businesses, shared his experience of nearly 20 years: “Fifteen years ago, many orchards of sweet tangerines, mangosteen, and avocados, although not highly profitable, provided stable yields. However, recognizing the trend of increasing durian consumption, many households cut down some tangerine orchards, learned from experience, and intercropped durian. Some households even cut down entire orchards worth hundreds of millions of dong to specialize in durian cultivation. To be honest, I felt heartbroken at the time because the fruit market is very unpredictable, like a ‘double-edged sword’ that can bring brilliant success but also carries many risks. However, by boldly switching crops, changing farming practices, and applying scientific advancements to their orchards, farmers in Nam Thanh commune have reaped many ‘sweet fruits’, especially in the last three years, earning billions of dong from durian…”
Regarding Hamlet 10, the Party Secretary Tran Cong Hoi proudly stated that the hamlet has no near-poor or poor households and has been a wealthy hamlet since 2015, maintaining that status to this day. This is simply because every household in the hamlet has a considerable amount of durian cultivation land; some have as little as 2 hectares, while others have several tens of hectares. Thanks to this, the annual income of even the lowest-income households is no less than 1 billion VND...
Concerns about the regional planting code.
Not only in Ro Mo, but also in Nam Thanh, many households have become wealthy from fruit farming. In the Ta Pua area, stories of farmers earning billions of dong from durian are also numerous. A cooperative has been established there, guiding farmers in registering planting area codes and adhering to VietGAP standards for export. According to statistics from the Nam Thanh Commune People's Committee, the entire commune has 2,200 hectares of fruit trees, of which 1,500 hectares are durian, with 1,200 hectares under harvest, yielding 240 quintals/hectare and producing 28,800 tons. Fruit-growing areas in Nam Thanh commune are concentrated in three regions: Da Kai (Ro Mo), Sung Nhon, and Me Pu (Ta Pua). Durian is grown throughout the commune. However, due to the terrain, Da Kai and Ta Pu-Me Pu have an advantage in terms of higher quality fruit production. Because the terrain in the Da Kai and Ta Pua areas is steeper than in the Sung Nhon area, durian trees are best suited to sloping areas for easy drainage, minimizing waterlogging and root rot.
Mr. Tran Cao Tung, Head of the Economic Department of Nam Thanh commune, said: In Sung Nhon commune, there are two durian cooperatives: Ta Pua - Me Pu Durian Cooperative and Doi Lo O - Sung Nhon Durian Cooperative, and one Ro Mo (Da Kai) Durian Cooperative. The area that has been granted planting area codes in the commune is 10 codes/537.3 hectares.
One issue that many durian farmers in Nam Thanh are concerned about is whether the granted planting area codes will be exploited. Mr. Thuong, who cultivates nearly 20 hectares of durian in Ro Mo and received a planting area code, expressed his worries: “Many businesses collaborate to obtain planting area codes for households. Once they have the codes, these businesses mix durian from other areas with the durian from Ro Mo and Nam Thanh commune – where the codes were registered – and then export it, while the durian owners are unaware, and the commune has no way to manage it. This is a loophole in the legal framework; businesses acting recklessly for profit could easily cause losses for the farmers who registered for planting area codes.”
According to Mr. Tran Cao Tung, while this situation hasn't occurred in Nam Thanh commune yet, it has happened in some other provinces. Goods are returned by foreign buyers due to substandard quality, but upon inspection of the growing areas, it's discovered that businesses are using deceptive tactics. Why are durian and other fruits exported to China from other provinces and cities being returned due to pesticide residue, while Ro Mo and Nam Thanh communes are unaffected? Mr. Tung explained that most durian orchards in the commune follow VietGAP standards, have designated growing areas, and growers monitor each other. If someone overuses pesticides, the locals will spread the word, and the exporting businesses will know. Therefore, no one is harming themselves. However, given the current situation, he requested that relevant agencies monitor the situation...
Tran Cong Hoi, Party Secretary of Hamlet 10, shared his concerns: “In the hamlet, nearly 180 hectares/50 households have been granted planting area codes, and most people grow durian according to standards for export. However, when the goods arrive at the enterprise's warehouse, we don't know how the preservation and chemical treatment are done, so people are very worried about the goods being returned. This issue urgently needs supervision from management levels to protect the people when building high-quality fruit growing areas for export...”
Leaving Nam Thanh, I was quite impressed by the sight of sturdy, multi-story houses nestled amidst lush green durian and avocado orchards. The economic landscape of the Nam Thanh fruit-growing region is telling the story of farmers in remote areas who, with their mindset and ability to grasp market trends, can achieve success...
Source: https://baolamdong.vn/trai-ngot-o-nam-thanh-403429.html
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