Growing high-yield gac fruit at 12,000 VND/kg is not enough to sell.

With the price of 12,000 VND/kg, farmers in Kim Binh commune, Tuyen Quang province earn nearly 30,000 VND from gac fruit, making gac a highly profitable crop here.

Win-win relationship

In 2010, Mr. Doan Van Chung, Director of Chung Tin Agricultural Trade and Service Cooperative, brought high-yield hybrid gac trees to plant on 2,000 ^square meters of his family's garden in Kim Binh commune, Tuyen Quang province. At that time, no one in Kim Binh thought about growing gac for economic development, so his decision was considered quite strange. But he persisted, because he knew that in Hai Phong, Hung Yen... gac trees had proven to be highly effective economically.

That risk was quickly rewarded. The gac tree was suitable for Kim Binh soil and climate, grew quickly, bore many fruits, and had beautiful appearance. When harvest time came, traders bought the fruits as they ripened. People began to believe that gac trees had economic value and cooperated with Mr. Chung to expand the area.

From an initial area of ​​only 2,000 ^m2 , the gac growing area of ​​Kim Binh and neighboring communes such as Ngoc Hoi and Hoa An has now expanded to more than 100 hectares, becoming a crop that brings high economic value to the locality.

Currently, the area of ​​high-yield hybrid gac growing in Tuyen Quang has reached over 100 hectares. Photo: Dao Thanh.

Chung Tin Cooperative plays a key role in linking production and consumption. The Cooperative signs contracts with households, prepaying 50% of seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides when people have needs. At the same time, it commits to purchasing all products at market prices, with a floor price of 6,000-7,000 VND/kg. The Cooperative also assigns technical staff to closely monitor the process of planting, caring, and preventing pests and diseases, ensuring that the products meet purchasing standards.

Mr. Le Anh Tuan, Chairman of Kim Binh Commune People's Committee, said that the gac linkage model has helped farmers access modern production methods, improve productivity, increase income and, more importantly, create a sustainable bridge between farmers and businesses in the value chain. This is also a direction to help solve local employment and promote stable development of the rural economy.

Not only bringing economic value, the model also changes the farming mindset of the people, gradually shifting from the tradition of only growing short-term crops such as corn, peanuts, beans... for low income, to commercial gac production, applying science and technology. Thanks to that, income has improved significantly, farmers are confident in sticking with the land, contributing to building sustainable commodity agriculture in the locality.

Earn 300 million per hectare

With an average purchase price of 12,000 VND/kg committed by Chung Tin Cooperative, each hectare of gac fruit yields a revenue of 250-300 million VND/year. After deducting costs, the profit from gac fruit is many times higher than that from growing rice, corn or traditional crops.

Mr. Doan Van Chung, Director of Chung Tin Agricultural Trade and Service Cooperative, said that the biggest investment cost for gac trees is only in the first year, including seeds, trellis, irrigation system... on average about 150 million VND/ha. However, if properly cared for, after only 8 months of planting, the trees will start to yield and can completely help farmers recover their capital in the first crop. From the second year onwards, costs are significantly reduced, mainly in care and fertilizer, and people begin to earn high profits.

If well cared for, each hectare of gac fruit can bring farmers in Tuyen Quang a profit of 400 million VND. Photo: Dao Thanh.

The F1 high-yield hybrid gac variety that the Cooperative is developing is a strong, widely adaptable vine, especially suitable for loose, well-drained soil. This variety produces large, beautiful red fruit, lots of flesh, few seeds, with an average yield of 25-30 tons/ha; with good intensive cultivation it can reach 40-50 tons/ha. The tree also has relatively good resistance to pests and diseases, with a time from planting to harvest of 210-240 days.

Mr. Hoang Van Hoc’s family in Na Bay village, Chiem Hoa commune, boldly invested in 3 hectares of gac fruit. Initially, he and many other households were worried about the effectiveness of the new crop, but after attending technical training sessions and learning about the actual models in other localities, he decided to join the cooperative. His family built trellises, raised beds, and fertilized according to the instructions of technical staff.

Mr. Hoc said that applying composted manure, using biological products and safe pesticides helps plants grow well, while creating products that meet standards and are environmentally friendly. Thanks to that, the health of both workers and consumers is guaranteed. After 5 years of growing, each crop he harvests about 60 tons of gac, bringing in revenue of over 600 million VND/year.

Mr. Hoang Hong Truong, Director of the Agricultural Extension Center of Tuyen Quang province, said that the gac model in Kim Binh and neighboring communes is an agricultural direction with high economic value, contributing to improving people's lives. However, the model also revealed some limitations such as many households selling gac when it is still green, causing the quality to decrease, affecting the brand; green worms that eat leaves and young fruits still have no specific medicine; the preliminary processing and processing technology of the cooperative is still backward, not meeting market demand.

These are difficulties that require synchronous coordination between the Department of Agriculture and Environment, local authorities, cooperatives and people to gradually resolve, helping gac trees truly become a sustainable source of wealth for Kim Binh land and neighboring areas of Tuyen Quang province.

Source: https://nongnghiepmoitruong.vn/trong-gac-cao-san-gia-12000-dong-kg-khong-du-ban-d787394.html