NAM DINH Faced with increasingly strict market requirements for product quality, shifting to safe, organic vegetable production is the key for farmers to stand firm.
NAM DINH Faced with increasingly strict market requirements for product quality, shifting to safe, organic vegetable production is the key for farmers to stand firm.
During a recent business trip to Nam Dinh province, I had the opportunity to visit the safe vegetable production facility of Dinh Moc Circular Agricultural Economy Cooperative (Giao Tien commune, Giao Thuy district). Mr. Dinh Xuan Moc, Director of the Cooperative, did not hesitate to share the creative methods that the Cooperative is applying to improve product quality, save costs, and protect the environment.
Mr. Dinh Xuan Moc in the organic compost area serving vegetable production of Dinh Moc Circular Agricultural Economy Cooperative. Photo: Trung Quan.
According to Mr. Moc, in the context of constantly increasing prices of input materials and agricultural services, consumers are increasingly demanding on food quality and safety, developing safe, organic production is a "warranty stamp" for products to stand firm in the market.
However, safe production is a long and difficult journey, especially in the early stages of approach and conversion. Because the habit of farming based on experience, completely dependent on chemical inputs (fertilizers, pesticides) has been deeply rooted in the thinking of many farmers. When they see that the color of vegetable leaves is not beautiful, they immediately fertilize, when they see pests and diseases on plants, they spray pesticides without paying much attention to the effective spraying time, the necessary dosage...
When every step in the production process is not controlled, it leads to increased costs, the soil is not supplemented with nutrients, the microorganism system is poor, becomes hard; the product is saturated, difficult to sell, and the profit is not high. Faced with that reality, the Board of Directors and members of the Cooperative have agreed that no matter how difficult it is, they will persist in producing safe vegetables according to VietGAP standards, organic direction to create a difference, increase competitiveness.
In 2022, when the Cooperative participated in the Project to strengthen the value chain of safe crops in the northern provinces of Vietnam implemented by the National Agricultural Extension Center and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), that determination and belief were further strengthened.
With the technical support of Japanese experts and agricultural extension officers, the cooperative utilizes all by-products from farming and livestock farming such as straw, spoiled vegetables, grass, cow and goat manure, etc. to compost into organic fertilizers to protect the environment and save costs. In addition, earthworm farming creates a source of nutrition, mixed with other organic fertilizers; uses industrial organic fertilizers and biological pesticides to ensure product safety.
Members of Dinh Moc Circular Agricultural Economic Cooperative mix by-products and press them into pellet fertilizers for use on crops. Photo: Trung Quan.
The cooperative also regularly propagates and reminds members to keep production diaries, organizes cross-monitoring to raise awareness of members; helps them persistently change production methods from traditional to applying safety standards such as VietGAP, GlobalGAP, organic agriculture. At the same time, organizes for households to visit safe production models, applying scientific and technical advances, high technology in and outside the province to learn from experience and strengthen confidence...
With methodical steps, the Cooperative has now built a safe vegetable production area of 5 hectares, with an annual output of more than 190 tons, with a variety of vegetables such as sweet cabbage, kale, cabbage, amaranth, eggplant, cucumber, etc.
“To produce vegetables according to safety standards, the most important thing is that people must realize the value themselves and proactively change their mindset. One household doing it may not have a high impact, but hundreds of households doing it will make a different story. When everyone works together to develop, a market will naturally be created for this product line,” Mr. Moc assessed.
Mr. Nguyen Van Thong, Director of Nam Dinh Agricultural Extension Center, shared that Nam Dinh is one of the localities with the leading movement to develop safe, organic, and circular agricultural production in the Red River Delta region.
However, in the chain linking production to consumption of safe products, agricultural extension officers, cooperatives and production households still have many gaps that have not been filled, especially the issue of grasping market signals to adjust production activities accordingly.
The project to strengthen the safe crop value chain in the northern provinces of Vietnam has helped Dinh Moc Cooperative remove bottlenecks in the safe vegetable production chain. Photo: Trung Quan.
Since the Project on strengthening the value chain of safe crops in the northern provinces of Vietnam was implemented in the province, with the main goal of enhancing the capacity of agricultural extension officers, cooperatives, and producers, the gaps in awareness and action have gradually narrowed.
"The clearest evidence is the change in the way cooperatives organize production. Previously, production activities often focused on taking advantage of existing advantages and experiences to improve productivity but paid little attention to market demand, leading to many times when products were difficult to sell. Currently, cooperative members have worked together to develop synchronous production, following the chain; actively and proactively building production plans according to market demand, according to food safety standards, transparent origin, and environmental friendliness," Mr. Thong assessed.
Source: https://nongsanviet.nongnghiep.vn/tem-bao-hanh-de-rau-an-toan-co-cho-dung-tren-thi-truong-d423406.html
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