Using agricultural waste, organic fertilizers, harmoniously combining chemical and biological pesticides... to reduce chemicals for agricultural land - Photo: QUANG DINH
Experts say that to increase the health of agricultural soil, it is necessary to rebalance nutrition from agricultural by-products, use biochar, organic fertilizers, and harmoniously use chemical and biological pesticides...
"Bad soil cannot be squeezed into a pot"
On October 22, speaking with Tuoi Tre Online, Mr. Nguyen Dang Nghia, director of the Center for Tropical Agricultural Research and Consulting, said that for a long time there has been no concept of "soil health". This concept includes basic elements in the soil such as: organic matter, nutritional balance in the soil.
"The fact that the soil is degraded and no longer fertile is a reality. But there is also a reality that we are haphazardly applying fertilizers, both inorganic and organic, causing excess nutrients to exceed the threshold. Lack of nutrients in the soil is very easy to supplement, such as adding organic fertilizer because organic fertilizer in Vietnam is not lacking. Excess is very difficult to separate.
Bad land will affect production, agricultural product quality, human environment, consumer health... that is, it does not bring any value at all," Mr. Nghia assessed.
Meanwhile, there are some opinions that bad soil comes from the "indiscriminate" use of pesticides.
"Except for production chains, from fertilizers to pesticides, which are very systematic because there is a team to implement them. The majority of farming practices use chemical fertilizers, pesticides, etc. out of inertia. They see immediate benefits but not long-term harm," said a member of the Vietnam Association of Pesticide Production and Trading Enterprises.
Return agricultural by-products to the soil
The solution to reduce chemicals in agricultural land, according to Mr. Nghia, is first to limit the massive import of fertilizers, so that Vietnam does not become the world's garbage dump; or restore the land with organic fertilizers...
"The most important and simple way to restore soil health, which can be done immediately, is to convert agricultural by-products into biochar and fertilize the soil. Biochar is made from coconut fiber, sawdust, straw, bagasse, cassava pulp, coffee husks... these materials are not difficult to recover.
We must practice circular agriculture, then move towards green agriculture to have sustainable agriculture. For a long time, we have been calling for solutions a lot, but doing very little. It is time to act!", Mr. Nghia spoke up.
According to a lecturer in land management at Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry and Trade, good solutions are needed to use pesticides effectively; harmoniously use chemical and biological pesticides, prioritize the use of organic fertilizers with full range of types and yields...
Meanwhile, Mr. Vu Duy Hai - General Director of Vinacam Group - admitted that the solution to make the land "healthy" is not difficult, but to handle it, in addition to the main solutions, it is necessary to include the condition of... increasing the population's knowledge.
Mr. Hai said: "Basically, the solution is to use organic fertilizers and limit inorganic fertilizers. However, the reality is that using organic fertilizers does not yield high productivity and is costly. In Vietnam, organic products are equated with products using chemical fertilizers, so producers suffer losses... Soil improvement is urgent, but when people's knowledge gradually increases and consumers accept organic products even if the price is 3-4 times higher, this problem will be solved."
Every year more than 150 million tons of agricultural by-products are wasted.
According to statistics from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Vietnam has more than 150 million tons of agricultural by-products each year. However, the ministry also believes that the "gold mine" favorable for developing biochar is being wasted.
Specifically, about 90 million tons of post-harvest by-products from crops, from the agricultural processing of the cultivation industry; 62 million tons of livestock and poultry manure from the livestock industry; 6 million tons from the forestry industry; nearly 1 million tons from the fisheries industry.
Every year, the biomass by-products from rice, corn, sugarcane, and various vegetables can provide about 43 million tons of organic matter; 1.8 million tons of urea; 1.6 million tons of superphosphate; 2.2 million tons of potassium... This is considered a huge number to compensate for nutrients in the soil and use for crops in agricultural cultivation.
In the livestock industry, only 23% of waste is utilized to produce organic fertilizer, the rest is wasted.
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/dat-nong-nghiep-suy-kiet-trong-khi-hon-150-trieu-tan-phu-pham-nong-nghiep-bi-lang-phi-20241022112009617.htm
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