Healthy rice plant, fresh environment, and better farmer thanks to SRI

Over 70 percent adopt partial SRI

By the spring crop of 2022, more than 70 percent of Hanoi's 83,000 hectares of rice land have implemented a partial System of Rice Intensification (SRI) and around 6 percent have adopted the entire SRI.

Nguyen Manh Phuong, deputy director of the Hanoi Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, stated that in the face of rising fertilizer and plant protection agent prices, the capital agriculture industry is promoting the use of SRI, particularly comprehensive SRI. The method of cultivation can reduce the amount of seeds, fertilizer, pesticides, irrigation water, and greenhouse gas emissions.

To support this movement, the capital agriculture has insulted the local authorities to provide proper policies for farmers to use SRI in nearly all rice-growing areas.

Regarding the benefits of SRI, Mr. Le Xuan Truong, Deputy Director of the Hanoi Sub-department of Crop Production and Plant Protection, stated that the number of seeds may be reduced by 50 to 70 percent with entire adoption of SRI. Due to sparse density, the amount of fertilizer used decreases proportionally. The amount of water used to irrigate the rice paddies is reduced by two to three times compared to conventional farming.

Following the initial application of this innovative cultivation technique, the rice plant's roots develop vigorously and penetrate the soil deeply, decreasing the risk of collapse.

In addition, it improves photosynthesis, resiliency, and pest and disease resistance compared to conventional methods.

In addition, the efficient use of water and the decrease of field flooding time contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and climate change in rice cultivation. This is the primary objective of the country's agricultural industry.

In the spring crop of 2022, there are more than 8,000 hectares of rice in the Ung Hoa district, of which roughly 70 percent are high-quality rice varieties, the majority of which are J02 and Bac Thom 7 varieties, and the remaining 30 percent are pure rice varieties.

Since the majority of the land is planted with high-quality seeds, the implementation of advanced farming techniques SRI has enabled farmers to cut costs, enhance quality, facilitate consumption, and increase economic efficiency.

Changing a habit is the most difficult

Mr. Le Xuan Truong, after addressing the SRI universalization process with the farmers of the capital, determined that changing the farmers' awareness and habits is the most difficult task.

During implementation, the visible benefits of the SRI method have convinced rice farmers to alter their mindset and practices. As a consequence, more than two-thirds of rice fields have employed SRI.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Tam of Hop Tien commune, My Duc district, was the first farmer in the city to switch from conventional to SRI farming. She said that she adopted SRI in 2006 with the assistance of local agricultural extension and plant protection agencies. Everyone first believed that SRI would be difficult to access, but following its adoption, it proved to be simple and efficient. According to SRI, the roots of rice plants are healthier, longer, and thicker.

Since the implementation of SRI, thanks to the restriction of pesticide spraying, the ecological environment of the field is always fresh. The fields witness the flush of shrimp, fish, crabs, eels, etc., leaf rollers have nearly vanished, with the exception of a few diseases such as stripe spot and leaf blight, which are caused by late fertilization.

Dismissing plant protection agents

In Hop Tien commune (District of My Duc), the Hop Tien cooperative has more than 4,000 members, the rice-growing area exceeds 500 hectares, and SRI has been applied to 100 percent of the land.

Mr. Nguyen Ha Tuyen, the director of the cooperative, stated that local farmers first had access to SRI in 2003 through training courses and experimental small plots and that since 2006, the organization has implemented SRI for better farming over the whole land.

Since the implementation of SRI, the Hop Tien Cooperative's members are delighted, as they not only boost their economic efficiency but also feel safer about their health, as there is almost no need to use pesticides in rice farming.

Hop Tien cooperative has around 250 hectares of rice variety VNR20 of Vinaseed Group with resistance to pests, hardiness, and extremely steady output, which can reach 72-73 quintals per hectare for this year's spring harvest. 65 hectares of these 250 hectares are sold to Vinaseed for seed production.

"3 rises" when implementing SRI will be an improvement in production, such as the spring harvest of 2022 reaching 70–71 quintals/hectare; an increase in rice quality; and an increase in economic efficiency, the unavoidable outcome of the aforementioned advantages.

According to Mr. Nguyen Manh Phuong, Deputy Director of the Hanoi Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, the most challenging aspect of growing the total SRI area is still the process of supplying and retreating water from rice fields. Therefore, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Hanoi proposes that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the City establish mechanisms and policies to support businesses that may stimulate investment in improving the irrigation system in order to resolve this issue.