Japanese experts and agricultural extension officers go to the fields with farmers to grow vegetables and tubers for export, income is increasing

From fields that were infertile due to the overuse of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, after being guided and "showed by hand" by Japanese experts and agricultural extension officers, farmers have learned to grow "green - clean - safe" vegetables that meet export standards. Most importantly, their income is increasing.

That is a real story recorded by Dan Viet reporters after working on many models of cooperatives and farmers when they participated in the Project "Strengthening the value chain of safe crops in the Northern provinces", implemented from 2022 - 2026 in 7 provinces and cities including: Hanoi, Hung Yen, Ha Nam, Nam Dinh, Bac Ninh, Hai Duong, Son La.

The project is supported by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in collaboration with the National Agricultural Extension Center, with the goal of increasing 20% ​​profit per unit area of ​​safe crops of agricultural cooperatives compared to the time of the basic survey; over 30% of agricultural cooperatives successfully expanded their sales channels...

Growing "green - clean - safe" vegetables, farmers earn more than 60 million VND/ha

With more than 6.4 hectares of vegetable and fruit growing area, Giao Ha Agricultural Production and Service Cooperative, Giao Ha Commune, Giao Thuy District (Nam Dinh) used to cultivate using traditional methods. "In the past, when we saw pests, we sprayed pesticides, and when vegetables grew slowly and stunted, we added fertilizer," said Mr. Pham Van Huan, a member of the cooperative.

Because of that, the soil gradually became infertile, and pests were not only repelled but also became more aggressive. The worst part was that after each spraying, it took until the next day for the smell to go away. "We knew it was toxic, but there was no other way," Mr. Huan said.

Mr. Huan recalls that there was a crop of cabbage that was so bad that traders didn't even bother to "pay attention", so farmers had no choice but to sell it cheaply or cut it off to feed pigs, chickens, fish...

Mr. Le Quoc Thanh - Director of the National Agricultural Extension Center splits a cabbage plant in half to check for pests at Giao Ha Agricultural Production and Service Cooperative, Giao Thuy District, Nam Dinh Province. Photo: Minh Ngoc

But that suffering of the members of Giao Ha Agricultural Production and Service Cooperative is no longer there, because they have switched to growing green - clean - safe vegetables, tubers and fruits under the guidance and "hand-holding" of experts from Japan and agricultural extension officers.

Now, walking along the cabbage fields, we do not see any trace of chemical pesticide packaging. Looking at the lush, green vegetable beds, the fresh air, especially when witnessing the scene of traders busily purchasing and weighing cabbages in Mr. Huan's family's fields, everyone feels excited.

"Since joining the project, we have been trained in technical processes, solar soil sterilization, aerobic composting, all vegetable fields use organic fertilizers and biological pesticides. We see that the quality of vegetables is higher than before, produced according to consumer demand so vegetables do not contain pesticide residues", Mr. Phung Van Cuong - Giao Ha Agricultural Production and Service Cooperative said happily.

In the 2024 - 2025 winter-spring vegetable crop, farmers of Giao Ha Agricultural Production and Service Cooperative earn a profit of 60 - 70 million VND per hectare of cabbage, twice as high as the traditional method of growing.

Mr. Dinh Xuan Moc, Director of Dinh Moc Circular Agricultural Economic Cooperative, takes care of each vegetable bed.

A representative of Dinh Moc Circular Agricultural Economy Cooperative, Giao Tien Commune, Giao Thuy District (Nam Dinh) said that with the technical support of Japanese experts and agricultural extension officers, the Cooperative utilizes all by-products from farming and livestock farming such as straw, spoiled vegetables, grass, cow and goat manure, etc., and composts them into organic fertilizer to protect the environment and save costs.

In addition, the cooperative also raises earthworms to create a source of nutrition, mixed with other organic fertilizers; uses industrial organic fertilizers and drugs derived from biological preparations to ensure product safety.

The cooperative also regularly propagates and reminds members to keep production diaries, organizes cross-monitoring to raise awareness among members; helps them persistently change production methods from traditional to applying VietGAP, GlobalGAP, and organic agriculture safety standards. At the same time, organizes for households to visit safe production models, applying scientific and technical advances, high technology in and outside the province to learn from experience and strengthen confidence...

Mr. Dinh Xuan Moc, Director of Dinh Moc Circular Agricultural Economic Cooperative, said that to keep the soil loose, he often uses biological products. Photo: Binh Minh

With methodical steps, the cooperative has now built a safe vegetable production area of ​​5 hectares, with an annual output of more than 190 tons, with a variety of vegetables such as sweet cabbage, kale, cabbage, amaranth, eggplant, cucumber, etc.

“To produce vegetables according to safety standards, the most important thing is that people must realize the value themselves and proactively change their mindset. One household doing it will not have a high effect, but hundreds of households doing it will make a different story. When everyone works together to develop, a market will naturally be created for this product line,” Mr. Dinh Xuan Moc assessed.

Support farmers in marketing, bringing agricultural products to the world

Recently, at the 3rd meeting of the Joint Coordination Board of the project "Strengthening the value chain of safe crops in the Northern provinces", Mr. Le Quoc Thanh, Director of the National Agricultural Extension Center affirmed: "The project has brought different approaches to farmers".

The first is market orientation. People are instructed to grow for sale, not to grow and then sell. In this, cooperatives and producers play the main role; agricultural extension officers and JICA experts will provide training on market surveys and support people in developing action plans.

The market-oriented approach (SHEP) is oriented throughout, motivating producers. Through training sessions, supporting study tours, and market surveys, the project will raise awareness among people. From there, the cooperative and direct producers make decisions on crop schedules, as well as learn marketing skills, farming techniques, networking, and post-harvest preservation.

In particular, instead of selling retail, cooperatives in the project area are guided to sell in a centralized manner, helping to increase negotiating power and reduce costs. Suppliers will collect, process and distribute vegetables on behalf of cooperative members.

On the local side, the Department of Agriculture and Environment will learn how to certify and enhance the safety of production groups in all stages from production to preliminary processing, ensuring food safety in all stages according to GAP. At the same time, guide farmers to apply farming techniques such as composting to improve soil, producing seeds, transferring new seeds with resistance and disease resistance, contributing to improving the safety and quality of products.

"We have called for the participation and support of many stakeholders. Recently, the National Agricultural Extension Center sent a group of students from the Academy of Journalism and Communication to the project area to create clips and promote the product. Thereby contributing to changing the approach to farming of producers," said Mr. Thanh.

Mr. Le Quoc Thanh, Director of the National Agricultural Extension Center, displayed a statue with the slogan about organic agriculture printed on Mr. Shiokawa's shirt at the organic vegetable farm in Son La, in April 2023. Photo: Minh Ngoc

Acknowledging the efforts of the agricultural extension system and the locality in implementing the project, despite the impact of Typhoon Yagi, Mr. Fukuda Chihiro - Deputy Chief Representative of JICA Vietnam assessed that local agricultural extension officers were very proactive in providing solutions to restore production after the storm through seminars, technical instruction leaflets and field training courses.

Through the project’s guidance and support, farmers have focused on accelerating the recovery of production after the storm, helping cooperatives regain stability. “The dedication to restoring production, especially the rapid recovery of vegetable producers, is truly commendable,” said Mr. Fukuda.

Mr. Fukuda Chihiro also appreciated the efforts in allocating local budgets to expand the project. This is essential to strengthen the safe crop value chain and needs to be ensured by both the regular budget of the prefecture and continuous support from the central government.

The project has 13 months left to finish. Mr. Fukuda suggested that Vietnam should be more proactive in providing extension services to agricultural cooperatives by using the project’s documents, specifically Viet-SHEP.

"Viet-SHEP is a market-oriented agricultural extension approach adapted to the Vietnamese context. We are firmly committed to creating long-term benefits for farmers," Mr. Fukuda Chihiro emphasized.

Source: https://danviet.vn/chuyen-gia-nhat-can-bo-khuyen-nong-xuong-dong-cung-nong-dan-trong-rau-cu-xuat-khau-thu-nhap-ngay-cang-tang-20250324104614224.htm