(Dan Tri Newspaper) - For several weeks now, households in Gia Lai province have been repeatedly targeted by thieves who sneak into their gardens to steal coffee beans. Furthermore, the thieves have also broken branches and cut down trees, causing significant losses to farmers.
Coffee prices are soaring to record highs compared to previous years. The peak price for green coffee beans reached 134,000 VND/kg. However, farmers haven't had time to celebrate the high prices before they are losing sleep over theft and vandalism of coffee crops occurring in many localities.
The family of Mr. Dang Van Dung (Linh Nham village, Dak Djrang commune, Mang Yang district, Gia Lai province) and neighboring households had dozens of coffee trees, almost ready for harvest, stolen by thieves.
Dozens of coffee trees belonging to Mr. Dang Van Dung's family were completely stripped of their fruit by thieves (Photo: Chi Anh).
According to Mr. Dung, on the morning of November 14th, his family discovered that about 50 coffee trees had been vandalized by thieves who stole both ripe and unripe coffee cherries. In addition to stealing the fruit, the thieves also broke branches and chopped down the trees.
"Upon inspection, we found that 20 coffee trees had their fruit and branches stolen by thieves, and 30 trees were completely stripped of their fruit. It's estimated that each tree lost about 25-30 kg of fresh fruit. Trees with damaged branches will take several years to recover. The family hopes that the authorities will investigate and apprehend the thieves who stole and vandalized the people's coffee," Mr. Dung said.
Many coffee branches were broken off by thieves and left in the garden (Photo: Chi Anh).
The garden of Ms. Vu Thi Mai's family in Dak Jrang commune, Mang Yang district, was also broken into by thieves who stole coffee beans and cut branches in the early morning of November 14th.
Ms. Mai said: "I visited the plantation and discovered that thieves had stolen about 10 coffee trees. Each tree currently weighs about 30kg, but the fruit is still green, so my family hasn't been able to harvest it yet. I hope the police will investigate and find the culprits soon so they can be severely punished and serve as a deterrent."
According to Ms. Mai, thieves usually target trees laden with fruit to steal. After the theft, the family hired two people to patrol the 2 hectares of coffee plantation day and night. Family members also lost sleep and appetite, taking turns guarding and waiting for the coffee to ripen so they could harvest it.
Ms. Vu Thi Mai's family also had their coffee stolen and branches broken by thieves (Photo: Chi Anh).
In October and November, the coffee garden of Ms. Vu Thi Xuan's family (De Ron village, Dak Djrang commune) was also vandalized by thieves who stole and destroyed 23 coffee trees.
The family of Mr. Huynh Huu Quy (Yen The ward, Pleiku city, Gia Lai province) had nearly 40 coffee trees stolen, resulting in a total loss of approximately 300kg of coffee.
Ms. Dinh Thi Kim Anh (Ia Dom commune, Duc Co district) had more than 40 coffee trees stolen.
The coffee harvest has just begun, but theft and vandalism of coffee crops are occurring in many districts across Gia Lai province, causing great worry and anxiety among the local people.
Mr. Ho Ngoc Thang, Acting Chairman of the People's Committee of Dak Djrang commune, shared: "The situation of theft and destruction of coffee is alarming. In just the past 10 days, the commune has received reports from residents about theft and destruction of coffee plants. The police force is coordinating investigations to track down the perpetrators."
According to Mr. Thang, since the beginning of the coffee harvest season, the commune has directed departments and organizations to raise awareness among the people to prevent theft. At the same time, the commune has also coordinated to monitor people entering and leaving the area, and increased nighttime patrols with the commune police.
Source: https://dantri.com.vn/lao-dong-viec-lam/nguoi-dan-buc-xuc-vi-ke-gian-lien-tuc-trom-qua-chat-pha-cay-ca-phe-20241120143237514.htm
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