Prices increase but pepper growers are not happy

Good price, bad harvest

The family of Ms. Thai Thi Hoai Sen in Tan Hoa hamlet, Tan Tien commune, Bu Dop district grows 5 sao of Vinh Linh pepper. After 12 years, the pepper garden of 700 poles gradually died, leaving only more than 500 poles. In the 2024 crop, the garden harvested 1.2 tons of dry pepper. This year, the yield is only 1/6 compared to the previous crop, the pepper garden is almost completely lost. Currently, many pepper pillars in the garden have not been harvested, but there are almost no fruits or only a few short pepper strings with sparse seeds. Ms. Sen said: "When the tree bloomed in the 5th lunar month of last year, it encountered a drought that lasted nearly a month, causing the flowers to fall off. Only when the pepper tree blooms and it rains continuously will the yield be achieved."

Mr. Nguyen Duy Trinh's pepper garden in Tan Hoa hamlet, Tan Tien commune has 8 sao, planted 1,200 poles, and has entered its 7th year. Last year, Mr. Trinh harvested 2.3 tons of dry pepper, this year only nearly 2 tons. The garden is cared for as usual, but the productivity has decreased due to the prolonged dry weather affecting the flowering and fruiting process. The flowering and fruiting rate in the garden is only about 70%. Mr. Trinh said that when the pepper plant is flowering, it only needs 7-10 days of sunlight, and when it is drying, it will shed a lot. This year's crop has short pepper chains, few seeds, and the yield is not as good as last year. The pepper growing area and yield in this area are now not much left.

In 2025, the pepper garden productivity of Mr. Nguyen Duy Trinh's household (left) in Tan Hoa hamlet, Tan Tien commune, Bu Dop district will decrease sharply.

Most pepper gardens in Tan Hoa hamlet have failed, especially those growing Vinh Linh pepper, which has been completely lost. As for the garden growing Sri Lankan pepper like Mr. Trinh's family, the productivity is also lower than every year. With the pepper price at the beginning of the season being 175,000 VND/kg, after deducting the cost of care, Mr. Trinh still has a profit of about 2/3. Due to the increase in the price of dry pepper, after this year's pepper crop, Mr. Trinh is determined to rebuild the garden, planting new plants to replace the stunted and diseased pepper poles, with the hope that next year will have a bumper crop.

After many years of disease and price fluctuations, pepper growers are no longer interested in taking care of their gardens. Currently, the pepper growing area in Tan Tien commune is more than 300 hectares. With high selling prices, it is predicted that many pepper growers will continue to renovate their gardens and plant new ones to replace dead pepper plants.

For pepper plants to grow sustainably

This year, Mr. Nguyen Dang Hanh in Hamlet 8, Loc Thuan Commune, Loc Ninh District harvested 4 tons of dry pepper on an area of 2 hectares. The yield was only half that of the previous crop, but in return, the selling price was almost double. This year, Mr. Hanh earned more than 700 million VND from selling pepper, excluding expenses. Mr. Hanh said: “The family's main income is from pepper plants. This year, the yield decreased, but the selling price is high, so pepper growers are somewhat comforted. If the price is good and the harvest is good, farmers will be very excited and focus on taking care of and restoring their pepper gardens to increase productivity in the following year.

Pepper harvest in Mr. Nguyen Dang Hanh's garden in Hamlet 8, Loc Thuan Commune, Loc Ninh District

Last year, when the pepper plants were flowering, there was a long drought, and the flowers fell off all at once. The latter flowering period was rainy, so there were more fruits. In Mr. Hanh's garden, most of the pepper plants were Indian pepper, the remaining few were Vinh Linh pepper. Indian pepper plants have strong vitality, often produce many seeds, and are more productive than Vinh Linh pepper. 10 years ago, Mr. Hanh planted 5,000 poles, but after many years of disease, the pepper plants became stunted and gradually died, leaving only about 4,000 poles. In previous years, pepper prices fell, and many pepper growers in the area switched to growing fruit trees, but Mr. Hanh still stuck with pepper plants. This year, he has planted seeds and prepared to plant 1,000 new pepper poles. To expand the area, Mr. Hanh dug a water reservoir in the garden with a capacity of about 400m3, serving to irrigate the 3-hectare garden during the dry season. Mr. Hanh said: Depending on the cycle, the price of each type of crop sometimes goes up and down erratically, but he does not fall into a vicious cycle of planting and cutting because of the price. Instead of destroying pepper plants, Mr. Hanh invests in taking care of the garden to produce high productivity, when the price is good, the plants will not let the growers down.

By the end of 2024, Binh Phuoc province has 10,969 hectares of pepper, a decrease of 1,982 hectares compared to 2023, with an estimated yield of 2.1 tons/ha. According to the Project on developing key industrial crops by 2030, the pepper growing area in the province will reach 10,000 hectares, with an output of 25,000 tons. By 2030, more than 30% of the pepper growing area will be grown according to GAP and equivalent processes, and the pepper growing area will be assigned a growing area code of about 20%.

Mr. Pham Van Minh, Chairman of the Farmers' Association of Loc Thuan Commune, shared: "With the current upward trend in pepper prices, many households in the commune are maintaining and renovating old, ineffective pepper gardens and planting new areas. The Commune Farmers' Association coordinates with the District Agricultural Service Center to open training courses on pepper planting and care techniques. At the same time, we will promote and mobilize farmer members to continue developing pepper plants in a sustainable organic direction, creating stable output for growers."

Previously, the pepper growing area in Loc Thuan commune occupied more than 100 hectares. In previous years, pepper prices fell, many households abandoned their gardens without taking care of them. The pepper growing area is now only about 70 hectares. Recently, when pepper prices increased again, many households are renovating and replanting to replace old pepper trees, hoping to increase income. To develop pepper sustainably, in addition to technical factors, pepper growers need to pay attention to the issuance of growing area codes, ensuring traceability, aiming for export markets, and stable output.

Mr. Nguyen Dang Hanh in Hamlet 8, Loc Thuan Commune, Loc Ninh District planted 1,000 new pepper poles.