Choosing the path of clean agriculture: Bechamp’s aspiration

They work hand in hand, guiding members with the hope that farmers will shift their mindset and begin producing high-quality, valuable, and sustainable products.

This is the mission of Bechamp Organic Agricultural Cooperative, located in Village 10, Truong Xuan Commune, Dak Song District, Dak Nong Province.

The director of Bechamp Cooperative, Mr. Ha Cong Xa, is an intellectual. After 20 years working in various state agencies, in February 2024, he took unpaid leave to become the director of the cooperative, a position he has held since, without receiving any salary.

Bechamp Cooperative was founded in 2021 with just eight members, an initial capital of 24 million VND, and a few hectares of coffee and pepper crops.

“Bechamp is the result of a long-held passion shared by myself and some friends, including agricultural experts,” Mr. Xa explained. “We established the cooperative to change farmers’ mindsets and traditional agricultural practices. We aim to promote organic and safe production, creating a collective specialized in producing safe products that benefit the farmers first - the direct producers - and then consumers. This is something I have been practicing for a long time with my own family’s coffee and pepper gardens, which follow organic farming processes,” Mr. Xa shared.

However, he acknowledged that encouraging farmers to join the cooperative and change habits deeply ingrained in their routines is much easier said than done. “In addition to educating, explaining, and analyzing, we also have to lead by example. We demonstrate the benefits firsthand. Only when farmers see the results with their own eyes will they believe and follow.”

After three years of operation, the cooperative has grown from 8 to 41 members, including 32 coffee and pepper-growing households, as well as 9 scientists, managers, and directors of partnering enterprises who have contributed their efforts, knowledge, and capital to building a truly organic agricultural brand. The cooperative’s production area now spans 120 hectares of various crops, including 60 hectares of coffee. All of these are cultivated based on the principles of ecological organic farming, which were researched and developed by the Bechamp Science and Technology Council.

Through partnerships, four of the cooperative’s coffee and pepper farms have received USDA-NOP certification (the organic standards of the United States Department of Agriculture) and EU Organic certification (the European organic standards).

Mr. Le Dinh Hung, a founding member of the cooperative, is particularly passionate about clean agricultural production. He shared, “I have a pepper garden of over 1 hectare, which I have been cultivating using organic methods. It was certified organic even before I joined the cooperative. Currently, I am also cultivating my coffee garden organically, and the appraisal organization has already conducted an inspection. I’m now waiting for certification.”

He continued, “I realized early on that clean agricultural production is an inevitable trend, a path we must take if we want sustainable development. That’s why, when Bechamp Cooperative was founded, I was one of the first eight members to join. Organic farming certainly comes with its challenges at first, whether it’s in terms of care, harvesting, preservation, or processing. Initial costs can rise, while yields may initially decrease, impacting income. These are hurdles that not all farmers can easily overcome.”

“The first thing we do is show them that perseverance will eventually bring rewards. Over time, the initial difficulties give way to benefits: better health for the workers themselves, a cleaner environment, healthier soil, safer products, lower input costs, and ultimately, higher profits.”

According to Mr. Hung, the cooperative follows six core principles in managing organic gardens: using beneficial microorganisms along with animal and plant residues; avoiding the use of pesticides, herbicides, or chemical fertilizers; providing farmers with detailed instructions on propagating beneficial microorganisms for production, including using them to produce fungicides and pesticides; encouraging farmers to plant multi-layered crops to balance the ecosystem and minimize disruption to the natural soil structure; strictly controlling the process from harvesting to processing and preserving coffee; and reducing input costs while ensuring consistent product quality.

Mr. Ha Cong Xa emphasized that while cooperative members are highly committed to organic farming, it requires significant investment in equipment and machinery, making it costly. As a result, some financially constrained households have had to give up. To help farmers, the cooperative established a capital fund of 150 million VND to support members in purchasing machinery for production and processing, ensuring they can follow through with organic coffee production.

“I have over one hectare of coffee, and I wanted to cultivate it organically, so I joined the cooperative. However, due to financial difficulties, the cooperative lent me 15 million VND, interest-free, for four years. I used the money to build a tank, buy machinery and equipment for composting organic fertilizers, and produce biological pesticides. The cooperative also provided me with technical guidance on growing and caring for coffee according to organic standards. After nearly three years of organic farming, I’ve noticed my garden is much healthier. Last year, I harvested nearly 4 tons of coffee beans, which the cooperative purchased at a price higher than the market rate,” shared Mr. Thai Huu Nhac, one of five households receiving financial support from the cooperative’s fund.

With the goal of helping more farmers understand and become interested in organic farming, since its founding, Bechamp has organized dozens of training sessions on organic fertilizer production, biological pesticides, and plant care techniques. Additionally, the cooperative has conducted five training courses on organic garden management for 300 farming households, both within and outside the district. These courses covered specialized topics like roasting, grinding, coffee tasting, proper harvesting, processing, and preservation.

“While the concept of organic agriculture may not be new to many farmers, doing it, and doing it right, remains a challenge. Over the past few years, Bechamp has worked hard to spread the organic farming movement among farmers. This is the right direction for sustainable development,” said Mr. Ho Gam, Chairman of the Farmers’ Association of Dak Nong Province.