Protecting tea land, preserving Thai Nguyen tea identity

Powerful conversion

Thai Nguyen has been an obvious capital of Vietnamese tea. However, by the beginning of this century, the area of ​​Thai Nguyen tea was only over 10,000ha, mainly of the traditional midland tea variety. Over the past 2 decades, Thai Nguyen province has conducted a revolution to further promote its tea products. In particular, tea growers and makers become more and more happy attaching to their occupation.

The tea revolution has made tea makers happy since it comes along with a change in production methods that make them feel secure about their job. First of all, a drastic change in tea variety structure has resulted in a breakthrough in growing area and a "leap" in both quality and quantity for Thai Nguyen tea.

In 1997, Thai Nguyen had only 10,952ha of tea with an average yield of 31.48 quintals/ha but in 2009, the area increased to 17,309ha with yield also rising to 98.96 quintals/ha.By 2011, Thai Nguyen had nearly 18,200ha of tea with yield of nearly 109 quintals/ha, nearly 2 quintals/ha/year higher than that in 2010 and the output was over 181,000 tons (7 times higher than that of 1997). On average, each year, Thai Nguyen expands over 1,000ha of tea areas and develops new varieties. In 2011, the ​​midland tea area accounted for 65.3% while the area of new varieties made up 34.7%. But by 2015 and 2017 the area of new varieties had increased to 62.4% and 71% respectively.

Such a strong shift was mainly due to the improved productivity, quality and value of new varieties, of which the yield is especially much higher than that of midland tea varieties. While midland tea yielded about 70-80 quintals/ha, the new varieties could give 110-130 quintals/ha. Particularly, LDP1 tea could give a yield of 150-160 quintals/ha.

Currently, Thai Nguyen has about 22,5 00 ha of tea, with many concentrated tea production areas including those of new varieties making more than 80% giving an average yield of 123.8 quintals of fresh tea buds/ha/year. Each ha of tea can help bring in an average income of about VND280 million/year. In particular, famous tea areas such as Trai Cai, Minh Lap (Dong Hy district), La Bang, Tan Linh, Hung Son (Dai Tu district), Tan Cuong (Thai Nguyen city) have helped increase incomes for local people from VND500 million to VND750 million/ha/year.

Preseration efforts

From its position as a plant for hunger eradication and poverty alleviation, tea now is considered as a key crop of key agricultural products and a great value brand of Thai Nguyen. However, the tea growing area in recent years has increased slowly, leveled off, and is even at risk of decreasing in some regions. The main reason is due to a strong shift in the labor structure to industry and services, many projects on industrial infrastructure, tourism, residential urban areas "overlaping" tea fields.

To cope with that situation, Thai Nguyen Province People's Committee has issued a document to strengthen the management and protection of the land for tea cultivation. The document states that tea products can help not only meet the domestic market demand but also boost export bringing economic efficiency, improving people's incomes, reducing the poverty rate, and partly contributing to promoting new rural construction and local socio-economic development.

To promote the potential, advantages and well implement the goal of developing tea as the key product of the province, Chairman of Thai Nguyen Province People's Committee requested Chairman of People's Committees of districts, cities and towns to urgently review. planning, not planning other projects into areas to protect and develop local tea growing areas (except for key provincial projects and important national projects). 

Mr. Tran Van Cuong, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Phuc Xuan commune, Thai Nguyen city, said that Phuc Xuan is located in the area being allowed to use the certificate of geographical indication for the Tan Cuong specialty tea area. "Whenever I saw tea being cut down, and tea land to be ceded to other uses, I felt sad. Documents of the Provincial People's Committee promptly limit and prevent the leveling of tea hills for immediate benefits. It is also a gesture of gratitude to tea trees and tea makers," he said.

Mr. Ma Tien Kop, Deputy Head of the Agriculture Department of Phu Luong district, said that the district currently has 4,300ha of tea, in fact, in recent years, the situation of cutting and destroying tea to plant forests has occurerd. The area reserved for tea cultivation is more or less affected.To turn this policy into reality, Phu Luong district has mobilized 100% of its communes to sign a commitment to manage and protect the land for tea growing. Phu Luong advocates to maintain the existing tea area, and at the same time sets goals to switch to high quality tea varieties, promote safe and organic tea production so that to improve further the quality and brand name of Phu Luong tea.

Mr. Duong Son Ha, Deputy Director of Thai Nguyen Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said that Thai Nguyen tea industry not only ranks first in the country in terms of production, value and economic efficiency, but also in social culture, and the environment.

The added value of Thai Nguyen tea products still needs reach the world value standards. Protecting tea land is not simply preserving cultural identity but also ensuring stable and sustainable development with the definite goal of achieving prosperity for tea makers and tea regions.