High-tech agricultural applications help farmers escape poverty

Positive effects from high-tech agricultural production model

Currently, in Bac Ninh province, there are many high-tech agricultural production models that have been established and affirmed their brands such as: Hai Phong Agricultural Products Import-Export Company Limited (Luong Tai); Anh Duong Clean Vegetable Company Limited (Bac Ninh City); Liem Anh High-Tech Vegetable Cooperative (Viet Doan, Tien Du); Ngam Mac Agricultural Service Cooperative (Lang Ngam, Gia Binh); Duc Lan Agricultural Service Cooperative (Yen Phu, Yen Phong); Cuong Thinh Poultry Cooperative (Dong Tho, Yen Phong), Delco Farm (Nguyet Duc, Thuan Thanh)... These models show that the clean production trend has a strong influence on all fields in the province, affirming the sensitivity of farmers to the integration trend.

The province currently has 56 high-tech cultivation facilities, with a total area of 213,450 hectares, of which high-quality vegetable and flower production using net house, membrane house, and greenhouse technology is 82,860 hectares (an increase of 75 hectares compared to 2015). Forming 7 safe rice production areas meeting VietGAP standards (an increase of 6 areas compared to 2015), with a total area of 150,000 hectares; 14 vegetable production areas have been granted VietGAP certificates/Food Safety Eligibility Certificates (an increase of 13 areas) with a total area of 91,200 hectares...

Some establishments have invested in applying 4.0 technology to production, such as: Using drones to spray pesticides on rice and potatoes; installing sensor systems to control nutrition and automatic watering remotely for vegetables and flowers via smartphones.

In particular, the production of safe vegetables has been focused on by localities in Bac Ninh province for the past 5 years. Up to now, the whole province has over 3,000 hectares of safe vegetable production, accounting for about 1/3 of the total vegetable area. Thanks to scientific production, the average yield of safe vegetable area reaches over 20 tons/ha, the total output reaches about 60,000 tons, accounting for 25% of the total vegetable output of the whole province.

Lien Ap Safe Vegetable, Fruit and Fruit Production Cooperative (Viet Doan Commune, Tien Du District, Bac Ninh Province) is one of the "bright spots" in the production and consumption of agricultural products in the province. Notably, this model has helped many farming households here prosper and escape poverty sustainably. Currently, the cooperative is cultivating a total area of over 20 hectares, connecting more than 100 households to produce vegetables, Japanese cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, garlic, etc. according to safe processes.

In particular, the clean vegetable growing process that Lien Ap Cooperative is applying is quite strict, only using green manure, composted manure, clean water, and no pesticides. Compared to traditional vegetable growing, concentrated clean vegetable growing, although having many binding regulations, is safe for both producers and consumers, and at the same time brings higher economic efficiency.

Mr. Nguyen Van Hiep - Director of Lien Ap Cooperative affirmed: Growing vegetables in a safe direction not only ensures food safety but also increases productivity, contributing to improving the quality and value of agricultural products for farmers.

In particular, safe production methods gradually help farmers change old farming methods, moving towards modern agricultural production, for the purpose of protecting labor safety and public health.

Typically, before joining the cooperative, farmers used machinery, equipment, and agricultural tools spontaneously, without a firm grasp of technical processes, and had low awareness of labor safety, so unfortunate accidents often occurred, such as grass cutters cutting their hands, plows crushing their feet, etc., greatly affecting the health of producers.

Joining the Cooperative, members of Lien Ap Cooperative are trained in techniques, equipped with knowledge and raised awareness of labor safety, while improving the ability to handle unusual situations and incidents during the use of machinery, thereby minimizing accidents.

In particular, to minimize accident risks and ensure labor safety during cultivation, the cooperative proactively provides members with full protective gear such as boots, gloves, specialized helmets, masks, etc.

During the production process, cooperative members are also given regular health check-ups to ensure alertness while working, especially in highly technical stages such as operating machinery, spraying biological pesticides, etc.

According to Director Nguyen Van Hiep, safe production methods also eliminate the abuse of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, thereby reducing pollution, protecting the health of producers and providing clean food sources for consumers.

"Even when using biological pesticides, cooperative members are still equipped with protective gear such as masks, gloves, glasses... to minimize health-affecting factors and avoid occupational diseases such as skin allergies and pink eye," Mr. Nguyen Van Hiep affirmed.

Promoting the application of 4.0 technology in agricultural development

It can be seen that developing high-tech agriculture is really one of the important solutions contributing effectively, creating a breakthrough change in agricultural production in Bac Ninh province. However, to develop high-tech agriculture, there are also many difficulties and challenges such as investment capital, human resources, land, consumer markets, especially mechanisms and policies for high-tech agriculture development...

According to Ms. Nguyen Huong Giang, Chairwoman of the People's Committee of Bac Ninh province, the key to developing high-tech agriculture is linking production and consumption in chains. Therefore, the Provincial People's Committee needs to promote high-tech agricultural production, smart agriculture, digital agriculture; promote the application of science and technology, improve the quality of human resources, and associate with building a model new rural area.

To do that, Ms. Nguyen Huong Giang said that the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Bac Ninh province needs to continue researching, urgently completing and implementing the plan. From there, it will contribute to promoting the development of high-tech agriculture, creating momentum to bring Bac Ninh's agricultural economy to a new level.

In particular, in the immediate future, the People's Committee of Bac Ninh province is focusing on promoting the training and fostering of dynamic, responsive human resources who can quickly access and adapt to 4.0 technology. At the same time, it is reviewing, planning and building high-tech agricultural production areas in the province by 2035, with a vision to 2050 to keep up with the general growth of the province.

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