In previous years, the price of purple onions in Vinh Chau town (Soc Trang) decreased but would recover after only half a month, but this year it has lasted quite a long time, from 2-3 months. In addition to the decrease in the price of purple onions, the income of people here has become more difficult due to crop failure and low productivity due to the impact of the weather.
Onion prices drop, traders buy "drop by drop"
"The local price of purple onions is only 12,000 - 15,000 VND/kg for large bulbs, and small bulbs will have a lower price depending on the size," said Mr. Huynh Xui Khang in Hamlet 6, Ward 1, Vinh Chau town, Soc Trang province.
In previous years, the price of purple onions in Vinh Chau town (Soc Trang) decreased but would recover after only half a month, but this year it has lasted quite a long time, from 2-3 months. Photo: HX
According to Mr. Khang, he has been growing purple onions for 40 years. The total growing area is about 5,000m2, with traditional and new purple onion varieties.
Of which, the area planted with new purple onion varieties has not been harvested yet, while the traditional purple onion varieties cannot be sold, so they must be stored and sold when the price increases. However, this method will not last long because the yield is lost and the storage time is not long.
This farmer said that currently very few traders buy shallots to sell to wholesale markets, only companies buy them to store by freezing.
It is worth mentioning that in previous years, the price of shallots also decreased at the beginning of the year, but it lasted for a short period of time, about 15 days. This year, the period lasted from 2-3 months.
Like Mr. Khang, many farmers in Vinh Chau town, Soc Trang province said that the decrease in onion prices has made people's lives difficult. In addition to the decrease in prices, onion crops have also failed.
People stock up on purple onions waiting for prices to increase. Photo: HX
Mr. Thach Son, residing in group 6, ward 1, Vinh Chau town, informed that due to bad weather and pests, the onion crop failed.
"I planted over 2 hectares (2,000m2) of purple onions, finished harvesting and only got 1.7 tons, while in previous years the yield was over 4 tons. With the selling price of 11,000 VND/kg (compared to the previous crop, down more than 50%), it is not enough capital" - Mr. Son said.
It is known that the total cost for the recent onion crop was about 24 million VND/2 hectares for Mr. Son (land improvement, planting, labor, electricity, etc.).
Currently, some other households said that the price of shallots has increased slightly. However, it has not yet exceeded 15,000 VND/kg and traders are still buying "drop by drop".
Switch to growing new varieties of purple onions for big bulbs
The area of purple onions in Vinh Chau town is about 7,000 hectares/year, of which over 5,000 hectares are used for commercial onions, the rest are used for onion seeds. It is expected that the commercial purple onion season will end in about half a month.
New variety of purple onion has big bulbs. Photo: HX
Mr. Chau Van Then - Deputy Head of the Department of Agriculture and Environment of Vinh Chau town said: "Compared to the same period last year, the price of purple onions has decreased by 5,000 - 10,000 VND/kg (depending on the size of the purple onion).
In addition, due to the weather this year, from mid-December 2024, there were unseasonal rains that also affected the yield and quality of purple onions (small bulbs, bad color). Furthermore, the export situation this year was also difficult, affecting the consumption and price of onions.
To support people growing purple onions, recently, the Economic Department of Vinh Chau town (now the Department of Agriculture and Environment) has advised the People's Committee of the town to request relevant departments and branches to support the locality in introducing, promoting products, and linking consumption.
The town's agricultural sector has determined that for the sustainable development of purple onion cultivation, the selection of varieties is crucial. Therefore, in addition to the traditional varieties that local farmers are growing, Mr. Then said that recently, the unit has also coordinated with the Mekong Delta Development Research Institute and enterprises to test the purple onion variety Maserati F1 from the Netherlands. Initial results show that the onion bulbs are much larger than the traditional local purple onions and have beautiful colors.
Regarding the Maserati F1 purple onion variety grown in Vinh Chau town, Soc Trang province, which produces large bulbs, Dr. Dang Kieu Nhan - Director of the Mekong Delta Development Research Institute shared that the market really likes it, consumers favor it, so the product is highly competitive in terms of design.
It is known that when planting on trial, Maserati F1 purple onion grown by hand irrigation method had a yield of about 17.6 tons/ha, while traditional purple onion in Vinh Chau town with hand irrigation had a yield of about 14.3 tons/ha.
If grown using the drip irrigation method, Maserati F1 purple onion yields about 19.2 tons/ha, while traditional purple onion yields only about 15.1 tons/ha.
Currently, the experimental area for growing Maserati F1 purple onions is all contracted by the enterprise at a price 1,000 - 2,000 VND/kg higher than traditional purple onions in Vinh Chau town (depending on market price and onion size).
However, according to the people, although Maserati F1 purple onion has better development prospects than traditional purple onion varieties. However, when expanding the area, there needs to be a solution to link and consume sustainably. Because currently the area for growing Maserati F1 onions is still low (more than 3 hectares), favorable consumption is normal. In addition, growing this new purple onion variety requires a lot of labor.
Source: https://danviet.vn/nong-dan-trong-hanh-tim-soc-trang-doi-mat-voi-canh-that-mua-rot-gia-keo-dai-20250311104037762.htm
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