Dong Luong Commune unleashes potential from tea trees

Tea is a traditional crop, easy to adapt and suitable for the climate and soil conditions of the midland region. In Dong Luong commune, tea is not only the main source of income for hundreds of households but is also being identified as a key crop in the local agricultural development strategy. From small-scale production, up to now, the people here have gradually built a brand, increased the value of products and moved towards a sustainable and modern agriculture.

Da Hen tea area, Dong Luong commune is cultivated in a safe direction, helping tea products stand firm in the market.

Bringing value to the land

Dong Luong Commune is located in the midland, with low hills, mild climate, steady rainfall, and a rich system of natural streams, lakes and dams. The soil is suitable for tea plants to grow all year round. This is an ideal condition for the formation of large-scale, high-quality raw tea areas. From that advantage, Da Hen tea - a typical local product - is increasingly asserting its own flavor. Da Hen tea has become a culinary culture and is closely associated with the lives of the people here.

In recent years, Dong Luong commune has promoted the renovation of old tea gardens, converting ineffective hilly land to grow high-yield tea varieties such as LDP2, VN15... Thanks to the strong direction of the government and the efforts of the people, the total tea area of the commune has reached 170 hectares, the total value of tea trees is about 40 billion VND/year. In particular, the craft village of Da Hen tea production and processing has an area of about 100 hectares, with 80 households participating, becoming the main tea production center of the commune. Mr. Bui Van Chuong's household is one of the typical good producers with 3.5 hectares of tea.

Thanks to proper investment and care, each crop yields an average of about 150 million VND. Each year, 6 tea crops are produced, with a total revenue of about 900 million VND. After deducting about 50% of production costs, profits remain high. “Tea trees have been with my family for many years. Before, we used to grow them on a small scale, with low efficiency. Now, with good varieties, proper techniques, and stable prices, our income is much better. Each crop also creates additional jobs for the people around us,” Mr. Chuong shared.

Not only bringing economic value, tea trees also help to green bare hills, limit erosion, contribute to stabilizing the ecological environment and shaping a sustainable direction for local agriculture.

Exploiting local strengths, Da Hen Tea Production and Processing Cooperative is at the forefront of innovation in production thinking with a revenue of about 12 billion VND/year.

Direction of sustainable agricultural development

One of the important milestones in the agricultural development strategy in Dong Luong is the merger of three communes: Dieu Luong, Yen Duong and Dong Luong (old) into the current Dong Luong commune. After the merger, the locality has favorable conditions to re-plan production areas, reorganize agricultural infrastructure, focusing on key crops, in which tea continues to play a key role.

In order to develop tea plants in a modern, effective and sustainable direction, Dong Luong commune is synchronously implementing many solutions: Training in VietGAP and organic farming techniques, increasing the number of technicians working with farmers; encouraging collective economic models: cooperatives and cooperatives linking processing and product consumption; continuing to build collective brands and trademarks, promoting OCOP products, promoting on digital platforms; applying digital transformation in managing growing areas, tracing origins, promoting e-commerce; linking tea production with the development of eco-tourism and craft villages, creating an experiential space connecting culture and agriculture.

A typical example of this direction is the Da Hen Tea Production and Processing Cooperative - a pioneer in innovating production thinking. Currently, the Cooperative has more than 15 hectares of tea that meet VietGAP standards, a closed production process from planting, caring, processing, packaging, and consumption. The Cooperative has proactively invested in technology, applying digital transformation to improve production efficiency and product quality. "If Da Hen tea wants to go far, the production process must be methodical and safe. The Cooperative invests from the growing area, maintaining consistent quality, thanks to which, customers from many provinces and cities trust our products...". Mr. Nguyen Van Thanh, Director of the Cooperative said. The Cooperative has been granted the "Phu Tho Tea" certification label, the product has achieved 4-star OCOP at the provincial level. On average, each year, the cooperative produces 3 tons of dry tea, sells over 300 tons of fresh tea, with a revenue of about 12 billion VND/year, creates regular jobs for 13 workers, and an average income of over 100 million VND/person/year.

From the barren hills, tea trees have strongly revived, becoming a symbol of livelihood and pride for the people of Dong Luong. With new thinking, new ways of doing things and the support of the government, the people here have gradually awakened their potential, raising tea trees to become a key agricultural product, carrying the unique brand of the midland region of Phu Tho. Da Hen Tea is not only a drink that is the crystallization of the earth, sky and the hands of persistent labor, but is also growing day by day on the map of Vietnamese agricultural products.

Sunshine

Source: https://baophutho.vn/xa-dong-luong-khoi-day-tiem-nang-tu-cay-che-237766.htm