Currently, the price of dried coconuts in Ben Tre is being purchased by traders at 140,000 VND/dozen (12 fruits), the highest price in the past 5 years, opening up opportunities for farmers in the Mekong Delta provinces to 'live with coconut trees'.
Bustling coconut boats in Ben Tre province in the last days of 2024 - Photo: MAU TRUONG
Mr. Nguyen Van Hau - 57 years old, living in Giong Trom district, Ben Tre province - has just sold more than 1,000 dried coconuts for 130,000 VND/dozen (12 coconuts). After deducting expenses and reinvestment, he earned nearly 10 million VND.
"It's been several years since we've had a sale at such a price. In previous years, each sale only fetched a few million VND, and there were even times when there were no coconuts to sell, so my family didn't have the capital to invest. This time, thanks to the high price, I fertilized and added mud to nearly 1 hectare of coconuts right after the sale," said Mr. Hau.
Even coconut gardens with only a few hectares like the family of Mrs. Nguyen Thi Bay (72 years old, living in Chau Thanh district, Ben Tre province) this time also brought in an income of 3 - 4 million VND. According to Mrs. Bay, these days traders call continuously and quote prices of 130,000 - 140,000 VND/dozen but there are no more coconuts to sell.
According to coconut traders in Ben Tre, in recent months, although coconut prices have been pushed up, it is very difficult to buy the goods.
"Because after a while the price of coconuts dropped too low, the gardeners did not take care of them so the productivity was not high, partly because now the factories are in dire need of raw materials to produce confectionery and jam for Tet, needing a large source of raw materials so the traders cannot buy enough," said Mr. Tuyen, a coconut trader in Ben Tre.
Mr. Huynh Quang Duc - Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Ben Tre - said that Ben Tre coconut industry has deeply integrated with the world market, so fluctuations in raw material prices are normal.
Coconut growers and businesses need to understand and adapt to this fluctuation, avoiding confusing information. With the current price of coconut, Mr. Duc believes that gardeners can rest assured to live with coconut trees.
According to Mr. Duc, the main reason for the high price of dry coconut this time is because this year, the two largest coconut growing regions in the world have suffered a large decline in production due to the weather.
Specifically, in the Philippines, about 3.5 million hectares of coconut trees were damaged by storms and the second country is India, with 2.1 million hectares of coconut trees affected by drought and high temperatures, causing a significant decrease in yield.
"Therefore, coconut raw materials in the world are in shortage compared to every year, leading to strong attraction of raw materials and high prices everywhere in the world, not just in Ben Tre," said Mr. Duc.
Ben Tre has more than 80,000 hectares of coconut with an annual yield of nearly 690 million fruits, of which 80% of the area is dry coconut. Coconut trees are also the source of livelihood for more than 170,000 households, accounting for 70% of the local population.
The province currently has 28 cooperatives and 20 industrial coconut production cooperatives (dried coconuts) covering an area of nearly 5.5 hectares and nearly 6,000 members. In addition, the province has about 16,000 hectares of organic coconut area, accounting for more than 20%.
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/gia-dua-kho-140-000-dong-chuc-nha-vuon-song-khoe-20241228130806042.htm
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