Red chili garden of farmer Nguyen Xuan Hoi in Da Lat city (Source: VNA) According to the provincial Department of Agriculture and RuralDevelopment, the high-quality vegetable production model yields 400 million VNDto 500 million VND (17,400-21,700 USD) per hectare each year.
Flower production reaps up to 1.2 billion VND (52,200 USD) per hectare eachyear, while tea and coffee yield 250 million VND (10,870 USD) per hectareannually.
The record productivity is helped by high technology aquaculture, with 8billion VND to 9 billion VND (347,800-391,300 USD) per hectare a year.
The modern farming has set an example for other localities. However, thehigh-tech scene, especially small-scale models, faces several handicaps.
Nguyen Xuan Hoi is the owner of a 3,000 sq.m technology-based farm whichcultivates flowers, mini cucumbers and chili in Da Lat city. Being aware thatplanting clean vegetables is the best way to protect the health of consumers,for years, he nurtured the desire to farm without using chemicals. However, itwas not until a year ago that he obtained the financial resources to realisehis dream.
He invested more than 1 billion VND (43,500 USD) on green houses, autoirrigation systems and imported chemical-free fertilisers, which he called“hi-tech agriculture”.
“The biggest difficulty when I started was raising 1 billion VND in capital. Ihad to borrow from a bank and apply for mortgage. The bank preferentialinterest rate is low at only 1.1 percent,” he said.
Having more than 3,000sq.m of land, Tran Van Phuoc, a farmer in Da Nghich village,Lat commune, Lac Duong district, decided to invest in a greenhouse.
However, he could not borrow the 560 million VND (24,400 USD) needed, as theloan limit was only 70 million VND without collateral.
Tran Van Tan, deputy head of the State Bank of Vietnam’s Credit Department,said that lending for hi-tech agriculture involved a lot of risks and lackedagricultural insurance policies.
The investment capital for hi-tech agriculture projects is enormous. In fact,in Lam Dong province, greenhouse investment is worth 1.3 billion VND to 3billion VND (56,500-130,400 USD) per hectare. However, most of the products donot have stable markets, so investment efficiency remains limited, according toTan.
Even hi-tech agriculture enterprises face challenges. According to theregulations, properties listed as high technology must be attached to land.However, green houses and net houses have not been granted property ownershiprights on agricultural land, and so a limited number apply for mortgages.
The owners of small-scale high-tech farms, such as Hoi, who receive littlesupport from local authorities, are struggling to find markets. Hoi musthimself find companies to sell his products.
“I signed a contract with Cau Dat Farm Company. Every week, they come to buy myplants, but the price is unstable,” he said.
“My farm is on agricultural land which lies in a forestry area. The pathleading to my farm is so muddy that vehicles entering my farm can transportonly two tonnes of vegetables and fruits at the most. This reduces productionefficiency,” Hoi said, adding that farmers like him hoped the local authoritieswould help them upgrade the road to facilitate their farming.
Nguyen Van Son, Director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and RuralDevelopment, said that the province had taken some land accumulation measuresto support hi-tech farming.
After land clearance, the State acquires farmers’ land, builds infrastructureon the land and then lends it to enterprises.
Another way is that enterprises implement their projects first. The localauthorities will then approve the projects and assign land to domestic andforeign enterprises for rent within 20 to 50 years. Enterprises can evennegotiate to purchase or hire farmers’ land. The State will support them withland compensation and land clearance.
The provincial authorities consider hi-tech agriculture as the key to developthe local economy and are always creating favourable conditions for thissection, along with supportive policies from the Government.
According to the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development,private farms and farming households play an important role in the developmentof local hi-tech agriculture, because these farms account for large productionarea and primary capital (86.2 percent of area and 64.5 percent of capital).
The province values the role of farmers and hopes to promote production andconsumption by helping producers network with enterprises and cooperatives tostabilise markets, the department said.
Da Lat city and neighbouring zones will run a trial “green village” model. Thepolicy will also waive the tax on imported equipment and materials, which Vietnamis unable to manufacture, to build green houses and net houses.
In Lac Duong district, a leading locality for hi-tech agriculture in Lam Dong province,the district authorities, in collaboration with enterprises, have startedtraining courses for farmers on farming techniques. This helps enterprises keepemployees, farmers get jobs and learn effective means to produce on their ownland. The farmers’ attitudes towards high-tech farming have changed, and theyhave reaped more profits.
Lâm Dong province’s authorities are also paying attention to technologyadvancement, a key aspect.
Vo Thi Hao, Director of the provincial Department of Science and Technology,said that 60 percent of the province’s investment in science and technology wasspent on promoting hi-tech agricultural application, such as seed selection andproducing seedlings.
“The state management’s role and research roles of the departments have beenseparated. The research is assigned to institutes and educational facilities.The provincial agencies ask these institutes and facilities to conduct theresearch, and then apply them in practice,” she said.
“By doing this, we can connect research with local practice, as well asencourage management agencies to use the research results.”-VNA
VNA
