Chayote price drops to 300 VND/kg, Nghe An farmers dump it all over their fields

Due to the sharp drop in price of chayote, only 300-500 VND/kg, many farmers in Nghe An collect the fruit in piles to feed livestock or use as fertilizer.

Su su rớt giá thảm còn 300 đồng/kg, nông dân Nghệ An đổ đầy ruộng - Ảnh 1. — People in Quynh Lien commune, Hoang Mai town, Nghe An harvest chayote but no traders have come to buy - Photo: DOAN HOA

These days, if you have the opportunity to pass through the coastal vegetable area of Quynh Lien commune, Hoang Mai town, Nghe An, you can easily see piles of chayote lying around, with no one coming to buy them.

Quynh Lien is one of the large vegetable growing communes in Hoang Mai town, with more than 300 households growing chayote on an area of over 80 hectares.

Chayote is planted from August every year and harvested from November to March of the following year. This is considered one of the main agricultural crops, bringing stable income to the locality.

However, this year, the price of this fruit has dropped. At the beginning of the season, farmers were still able to sell it for 5,000-7,000 VND/kg, but the price dropped rapidly. Especially after the Lunar New Year, the price of chayote has dropped "unstoppably", currently only 300 VND/kg in the garden.

Walking around the fruit-laden chayote field to cut some down, Mr. Nguyen Van Vy - residing in Dai Dong hamlet, Quynh Lien commune - said that this year his family planted 15 sao of chayote.

Before Tet, chayote was sold to traders at the garden for about 6,000 VND/kg, but now in the main harvest season, the price has dropped sharply, to only 300-500 VND/kg. With this selling price, Mr. Vy does not have enough money to pay the harvesters, so he has to let the fruit fall.

Su su rớt giá thảm còn 300 đồng/kg, nông dân Nghệ An đổ đầy ruộng - Ảnh 2. — Favorable weather, chayote grows heavily with fruit - Photo: DOAN HOA

"Without buyers, we have to pick and discard the plants. If we don't pick and discard them, the plants will break, the trellis will collapse, and we will lose our investment. We spend about 5 million VND on seeds and fertilizer for each sao of chayote. If the price of chayote increases in the future, we may have enough capital, otherwise we have to accept a heavy loss," Mr. Vy lamented.

To prevent the tree from bearing fruit too quickly, every day Mr. Vy and his wife have to go to the field to pick some fruit and leaves.

Ms. Nguyen Oanh - Head of Phuong Lien Vegetable Consumption Cooperative - said that in the area there are nearly 20 establishments purchasing vegetables and fruits for farmers. It is estimated that every day hundreds of tons of vegetables are transported for consumption to other provinces and for export.

This year the weather is favorable, there are plenty of vegetables, but chayote cannot be exported, so the price has dropped. The selling price is not enough to cover the cost of harvesting, so people are not interested.

Vice Chairman of Quynh Lien Commune People's Committee Cao Xuan Phuong said the reason is that this year the weather is quite favorable, vegetables and fruits grow well, and other areas also have good chayote harvests, leading to supply exceeding demand and low prices.

"Chau su is the main winter crop of the commune, bringing economic efficiency. In the coming time, the locality will guide people to plant according to the plan to avoid the situation of supply exceeding demand," Mr. Phuong added.