Mr. Mai Van Chuy, Co Dung 2 village, was the first person to bring cassava from Hai Duong to plant in Dong La commune (Dong Hung, Thai Binh). The first year, he only planted a few holes for testing, but a year later, he harvested, each hole had many large tubers, giving high economic efficiency, so he boldly rented and borrowed more gardens and fields to renovate and convert to grow 1 hectare of cassava.
In recent years, as he and his wife have gotten older, they have reduced the cassava growing area to 1.5 acres with about 40 holes. The remaining area is dedicated to growing seedlings to supply to people in and outside the commune, while also investing in cassava flour processing machinery for their families and providing services to people. He and a number of others have established the Dong La Agricultural Products Processing and Trading Cooperative to utilize local cassava tubers to process and develop cassava flour to achieve 4-star OCOP product status.
Mr. Mai Van Chuy, Dong La commune (Dong Hung district, Thai Binh) collects 1 ton of cassava tubers/sao.
Mr. Chuy shared: Kudzu is an easy-to-grow plant, low investment cost, low care, few pests. However, because it is a root crop, to have high yield, it must be planted with grafted seedlings on loose, dry soil, and high mounds for planting, about 1 sao of planting about 10 holes; mix fertilizers into the holes and plant the plants, in August, water with phosphate and nitrogen to supplement the plants.
Up to now, Mr. Chuy is still the most experienced person in growing cassava in the commune, so every year his family's cassava harvest has the highest yield and sells for the highest price. Normally, he harvests 1 ton of tubers/sao, processing 200 kg of cassava flour. Not only is the harvest good, this year the price is also good, his family earned 200 million VND from this cassava crop. Every year, he also supplies 10,000 cassava seedlings to people in and outside the commune, and at the same time provides services to process dozens of tons of cassava into cassava flour.
Dong La Agricultural Processing and Trading Cooperative, of which he is Deputy Director, purchased more than 10 tons of cassava tubers in 2023 to process into cassava flour to supply markets in and outside the province. This year, it is expected to purchase more fresh cassava tubers for people to process into flour that meets 4-star OCOP standards.
Kudzu contains many nutrients, adding kudzu powder will bring great benefits to human health. The demand for kudzu powder is increasing, the income from growing kudzu is higher than some other crops, so the number of households in Dong La commune learning from Mr. Chuy to grow kudzu is increasing. This year, kudzu has a high yield, 1 sao yields about 1 ton of tubers, selling for 18 - 20 million VND, depending on the type; if processed into powder, the value increases to 40 million VND.
After being processed into a product, tapioca starch meets 4-star OCOP standards.
Mr. Pham Van Gac, Co Dung 2 village, said: My family planted 11 cassava holes since the beginning of 2023, and is now harvesting. This cassava crop has a yield double that of last year. If last year we only harvested 40 - 50 kg/hole, this year it will reach 70 kg to 1 quintal. The selling price of tubers is about 2,000 - 3,000 VND/kg higher, the selling price of cassava flour is 200,000 VND/kg, 20,000 VND/kg higher than last year. All the fresh tubers harvested are processed into flour by my family, which can be stored for a long time and sold when the price is good.
In 2023, Ms. Le Thi Hang, Co Dung 2 village, planted 11 cassava holes. After nearly a year of hard work cultivating and fertilizing, it is now time to harvest.
Ms. Hang said: Last year, the weather was favorable, so the cassava yield was high, and the growers were all excited. There were cassava holes where when the thin layer of soil was removed, the whole tubers emerged, each root yielded up to 100 tubers, something that not every harvest can achieve.
Since the establishment of Dong La Agricultural Products Processing and Trading Cooperative, the consumption of cassava tubers has become much more convenient for the people, the selling price is also higher than the market price, the income of the people has also increased, often 4-5 times higher than growing rice. We are confident in expanding the area of cassava cultivation.
Ms. Mai Thi Thuy, Deputy Director of Dong La Commune Agricultural Service Cooperative, said: Having taken root in Dong La land for more than 20 years, cassava has become a strong crop, a source of wealth for many households here.
Up to now, the commune has over 200 households growing cassava with about 20 hectares, many households grow up to several acres, concentrated in Co Dung 2 village. Due to suitable soil conditions, and being planted and fertilized by people with techniques and experience gained over many years, cassava produces many tubers, with a characteristic delicious quality, known to many people.
Every year, the cooperative organizes training and technical guidance on grafting seedlings, planting and caring for cassava; provides quality nitrogen fertilizer to people; encourages households to renovate mixed gardens and convert ineffective rice growing areas to cassava growing.
Mobilize households, especially Dong La Agricultural Products Processing and Trading Cooperative, to promote cassava flour processing to increase value, quality, and standards, striving to upgrade the cooperative's cassava flour products to 5-star OCOP products.
Changing the mindset of agricultural production to the mindset of agricultural economics, farmers in Dong La commune have successfully built a brand of tapioca starch and become rich from this familiar, rustic local agricultural product.
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