Agricultural economic thinking

Can Tho farmers produce high quality agricultural products to meet market demands. In the photo, the mango garden of Vinh Trung Cat Hong Mango Cooperative, Vinh Tuong Commune, Can Tho City has brought high economic efficiency for many years.

Innovation in thinking

With nearly 35 years of experience growing durian, including 15 years of growing durian for export, Mr. Le Van Sau in Tan Binh commune, Can Tho city has accumulated a lot of experience with this crop. Mr. Sau has not only become a durian billionaire, but is also one of the few farmers in the former Hau Giang province (now Can Tho city) to be honored as "Outstanding Vietnamese Farmer of 2024". Mr. Sau said that success does not come naturally, but requires perseverance in learning, applying advanced techniques and daring to change the way of thinking about farming. Before having about 1,000 durian trees with an average yield of 15 tons of fruit/ha/year as present, Mr. Sau had many sleepless nights to find a way to change.

Mr. Le Van Sau shared: "The first year, I planted 180 durian trees on an area of 1 hectare of land. Seeing that durian was profitable, I bought more land to plant. Up to now, the family's durian growing area has increased to more than 5 hectares. Durian trees are very difficult to grow, so proper care techniques are required. I approached scientists to guide me on how to grow them, researched and studied more, and then I was successful."

Not only Mr. Sau, but also cooperatives in Can Tho City have been strongly changing their thinking about agricultural economics to keep up with market demands. With an initial area of several hundred hectares when it was first established in 2022, up to now, Xa No Mekong Rice Cooperative Union in Vinh Tuong Commune, Can Tho City has more than 1,000 hectares of rice land. Farmers see the benefits of production according to the model "Project of one million hectares of high-quality, low-emission rice associated with green growth in the Mekong Delta by 2030", so everyone is bold enough to participate.

Mr. Nguyen Van Thich, Chairman of the Board of Directors and General Director of the Xa No Mekong Rice Cooperative Union, said: When participating in production according to the project's standards, cooperative members reduce input costs, reduce rice seeds, reduce fertilizers and pesticides. In addition, the emission-reducing production process demonstrates responsibility to the environment and society, producing clean agricultural products for the community.

"In the past, farmers sold what they had, but now we are selling what the market needs. When we produce and serve the needs of consumers, providing products that the market needs, the profits are very high," said Mr. Nguyen Van Thich.

Sharing this view, Mr. Tran Van Phuc in Cu Lao Dung commune, Can Tho city has successfully launched the San Tien pink plum brand, with a total area of about 40 hectares, yielding 350-400 tons of fruit/year. This plum variety is impressive because when ripe, it has a deep pink color, weighs 4-5 fruits/kg, has a sweet, crunchy taste and is suitable for long-distance transportation. Mr. Phuc chose the organic production direction because, according to him, new-age farming must keep up with the trend, the product must be clean and safe to have stable quality, sustainable output and high selling price. The entire process of growing and caring for plums is strictly controlled. After more than a year of planting and caring, the plum garden began to yield, with a yield of about 20 tons/ha/year. Thanks to compliance with VietGAP standards, San Tien pink plums quickly conquered high-end fruit store chains in and outside Can Tho city with a selling price of up to 230,000 VND/kg.

In addition to maintaining the quality of fresh plums, Mr. Phuc also invested in preservation, classification and packaging systems. Before being released to the market, each batch of plums is tested to ensure safety for consumers. Up to now, the San Tien pink plum brand has been protected by intellectual property, creating a solid foundation for market expansion. Not stopping at fresh fruit products, Mr. Phuc also develops processed plum products. This is not only a strategic step to diversify consumption channels, but also contributes to making San Tien pink plums a typical product of Cu Lao Dung land.

"In addition to fresh San Tien pink plums, there is also plum wine, dried plums, plum flower tea, and juice. In the future, we will build a high-tech agricultural model associated with community tourism from the plum garden," said Mr. Tran Van Phuc.

Professional industry support

According to the Department of Agriculture and Environment of Can Tho City, from the beginning of 2025 until now, the city has promoted the implementation of the Plan to implement the Strategy for Cultivation Development to 2030, with a vision to 2050; Plan to implement the Project "Sustainable development of one million hectares of high-quality, low-emission rice cultivation associated with green growth in the Mekong Delta region to 2030" in the area. The industry has converted ineffective cultivated land to grow vegetables, fruit trees, perennial industrial crops, and aquaculture with higher economic efficiency with an area of 1,131 hectares; forming a concentrated production area with a large rice field area of 84,819 hectares, of which over 30% of the area is consumed by companies/enterprises/cooperatives/associated cooperatives. Developing fruit tree areas of over 40,000 hectares, vegetables of over 10,000 hectares; Support the development, inspection and supervision of growing area codes for rice, fruit trees and vegetables; issue packing facility codes for businesses; encourage the development of clean agriculture, organic agriculture, circular agriculture, etc.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy Nhi, Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Environment of Can Tho, said that in promoting research, transfer and application of science and technology, seed production and digital transformation in agriculture, the sector has deployed and monitored the implementation of programs, plans, projects, and promoted production. Organized training, seminars, and field workshops with over 242 sessions. Regularly organized production, care, and consumption of certified, clean seeds to meet the needs of the locality and neighboring provinces. Collected databases of 546 agricultural, forestry, and fishery production and trading establishments. Issued electronic traceability codes to 321 entities with 621 products. Instructed and supported 119 units with 173 products registered on the "chonongsancantho" information portal. Implemented agricultural weather bulletins with over 309,700 people accessing.

In the coming time, the Agriculture sector of Can Tho City will continue to effectively implement plans and policies to restructure the agricultural sector, promote the development of value chains associated with agricultural tourism, and the OCOP program. Promote the development of high-tech agriculture, smart agriculture, and circular agriculture. Apply digital technology, promote product transactions through e-commerce platforms and digital transformation.

With the support of the government and businesses, Can Tho City is gradually forming a generation of professional farmers who farm with economic thinking, applying technology with a vision of sustainable development...

Article and photos: MONG TOAN

Source: https://baocantho.com.vn/tu-duy-lam-kinh-te-nong-nghiep-a194208.html