Doing clean agriculture is 50 times profitable than just farming rice

Gaining 50 times higher than farming rice

Dong Tien Agricultural Mechanization Service Cooperative (Dong Tien Cooperative) is located in Dong Tien Commune, Dong Son District, Thanh Hoa. It was established in 2012, and it mainly operated in the field of providing agricultural services such as harvesters, tillage machines, transplanters, and tray seedling plants. In 2015, Dong Tien Cooperative switched its operations to hi-tech agriculture, producing baby cucumbers, Queen golden melons (Kim Hoang Hau melons), and leafy vegetables.

“Market signals show that the trend of shifting from chemical agriculture to organic agriculture (also known as clean agriculture) applying scientific and technical advances is inevitable. Clean agriculture helps create safe agro-products with high nutritional value, which is beneficial to human health and protects the surrounding environment,” said Nguyen Xuan Thien, Director of Dong Tien Cooperative.

In May 2015, the cooperative completed the installation of membrane houses and planted 1,000 Queen golden melons on an area of ​​approximately 500 m2. The first melon crop yielded 1.5 tons. With a selling price of VND 45,000/kg, after deducting expenses, the cooperative earned VND 25-30 million per crop.

Experiencing initial successes, Dong Tien Cooperative continues to replicate the clean agricultural production model in the direction of high technology, large scale farming and forming link chains from production, processing to product consumption.

The cooperative also coordinates with specialized agencies including the Central Institute of Fruit and Vegetable Research, Dong Son District Department of Agriculture and Agricultural Service Center, and Thanh Hoa Gardening and Farming Association to organize technical training courses to improve the qualifications and skills of cooperative members.

“Instead of following traditional agricultural practices, we guide people to familiarize safe agriculture, with strict control over quality and registered standards (VietGAP, organic). Products will have traceability information, clear packaging and labels. The cooperative wishes to spread the motto of ‘clean agriculture from the heart’, applying high technology to increase the value of Thanh Hoa's agro-products and aim for export," said Thien.

The cooperative's current production area has been expanded to 4.4 ha, of which 2.2 ha are used to grow baby cucumbers, golden melons and moth orchids. Each year, the cooperative supplies the market with nearly 120 tons of Kim Hoang Hau melons, 70 tons of cucumbers, leafy vegetables, 60 tons of tomatoes and 40,000 moth orchids. The cooperative expects to harvest moth orchids at the end of this year.

All products are underwritten after harvest. After deducting costs, the vegetable and fruit products bring in a profit of more than VND 3 billion, which results in stable jobs and income for many local workers. According to Thien, producing Kim Hoang Hau melons in an organic manner using high technology brings in 50 times more profit than growing rice, and 30 times more than growing vegetables using traditional methods.

Applying high technology and automation in production

Recognizing the uptrend of moth orchid demands in recent years, the cooperative invested more than VND 10 billion this year to build facilities and plant 40,000 plants in an area of ​​2,000 m2. Thien believes this direction promises a large source of income for the cooperative in 2024.

"The supply of moth orchids is currently not enough to meet market demand. The industry still has to import over 70% of this type of ornamental plant from abroad to serve the domestic market. It is expected that the cooperative will earn VND 4 billion this year. After deducting expenses, the profit is estimated at over VND 1 billion," he said.

Not only the moth orchid garden but also all agro-products at the farm are cared for in an automated system from care to harvest. To reduce production costs, the cooperative has particularly invested in a solar power system for closed production. Membrane houses benefit from drip irrigation technology to save water, reduce the number of manual workers, and all plants can be cultivated all year round without fear of weather and pests.

In 2016, Queen golden melon, cucumber, tomato, and cruciferous vegetables of Dong Tien Cooperative met VietGAP standards. In 2019, Queen golden melon and baby cucumber products met organic standards. In 2020 and 2021, both products were respectively granted OCOP product certification.