After many years of losing pepper prices, this year’s crop price is recovering again, which is a good sign for pepper growers.
Currently, pepper farmers in Binh Phuoc province are at the end of the harvest season. The purchasing price of pepper has increased around 95,000 VND/kg in early 2024, the highest price in the past 5 years, bringing joy to farmers loyal to the plant once known as “black gold”. . However, the agricultural sector also recommends that people be careful and produce according to plans and planning.
Harvesting pepper in Binh Phuoc. Photo: TTXVN
The joy of “black gold” prices flourishing
According to records from pepper growing households in the border district of Bu Dop, the average price of the 2023 crop only fluctuates between 65,000 – 67,000 VND/kg. However, in the early spring of 2024, pepper prices continuously increased, by mid-March it had reached 95,000 VND/kg, bringing joy to farmers after years of record low prices.
Amid the harsh sunshine of the Southeast region, the pepper garden of about 2 hectares of Ms. Huynh Thi Kim Phuong’s family in Hung Phuoc commune is filled with a joyful atmosphere of harvest. According to Ms. Phuong, in 2023 the family will only collect more than 2 tons. However, this year’s crop, thanks to good care, yielded over 4 tons of seeds.
Ms. Huynh Thi Kim Phuong said: Last year’s crop had bad weather that directly affected the flowering and fruiting period. This year, when his family invested in taking care of it, the pepper garden bloomed with beans and fruits, and the output was more than double that of the previous season.
In addition, Ms. Huynh Thi Kim Phuong’s family pepper garden is grown in a clean organic way, so it was also purchased by Nedspice Vietnam Company at a high price of 105,000 VND/kg. This year’s increased output and rising prices help Ms. Phuong’s family make a profit and spend money to reinvest next year.
“This year, my family’s pepper garden has a much higher yield than last year. Besides, the purchase price was the highest in many years, so the family was very happy. Last year my family sold it for only 70,000 VND/kg. This year alone, the selling price reached 95,000 VND/kg, so I’m very happy. This year’s pepper season, households with a lot of acreage are also very excited,” Ms. Phuong said excitedly.
Ngoc Que Organic Pepper Group, also in Hung Phuoc commune, currently maintains an area of 12 hectares. Mr. Vo Ngoc Que said: while pepper prices were below 100,000 VND/kg, members of the team still “held up” to take care of organic pepper trees according to standards. The current purchasing price is bringing a lot of joy to members of the pepper growing group.
Mr. Que’s family himself grows 4 hectares of organic pepper with an output of about 10 tons. This year, pepper prices are high, so pepper growers are very happy. However, this year’s crop due to weather effects as well as reduced investment and care costs, the output of members of the ownership group is lower than last year.
Not only the household of Ms. Huynh Thi Kim Phuong, the organic pepper group of Mr. Vo Ngoc Que, but also many households who were “faithful” to pepper during the low price period have now returned to joy. The increase in pepper prices has helped pepper growers gain profits and have the opportunity to reinvest in sustainable economic development in the coming time.
Need to produce according to plan and planning
Harvesting pepper in Binh Phuoc. Photo: TTXVN
After many years of losing pepper prices, this year’s crop price is recovering again, which is a good sign for pepper growers. High prices will lead to new planting. According to Dr. Nguyen Van Bac, Director of the Agricultural Service Center of Bu Dop district, in the face of low prices in recent years, pepper growers have neglected and taken little care of their gardens, so the trees have declined and lost their productivity. low productivity. When seeing high prices, some households will invest in re-care or planting new trees. However, due to old age and little care, the ability to recover and develop is very poor.
“Many families a few years ago when prices were low, due to loss of income, they did not take care of the garden. If people re-cultivate pepper, they must identify themselves as doing agricultural economics, not simply farming. First, people must shape the supply and demand situation. In addition, people must determine whether they have enough potential in terms of human resources and suitable weather and climate conditions to carry out new planting. People should not chase quantity but quality. It is necessary to take care of the right process to shorten the basic construction time at the right time to have planned revenue and high profits,” Dr. Nguyen Van Bac added.
Mr. Bui Quoc Hai, Director of Hung Phuoc Sustainable Clean Pepper Cooperative, shared that the previous cooperative’s cultivation area was 150 hectares of pepper. However, in years when pepper prices are low, cooperative members rarely take care of their gardens, leading to dead trees and low productivity. Many pepper areas died due to disease and lack of investment, so the trees gradually weakened.
Mr. Bui Quoc Hai said that many households recently had many difficulties in their family life because of low prices. As a result, they did not have the conditions to take care of the pepper garden, so the pepper garden suffered from pests and gradually died. This year’s prices are good, so some families still growing pepper will reinvest. However, many households are also worried, with areas affected by pests and old trees, replanting them is very risky.
Current pepper prices are bringing joy to people. Some households have intended to restructure crops that were once considered “black gold”. Head of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Bu Dop district, Tran Van Thanh, advised people to produce according to plans and planning. Production must be suitable for the soil to grow pepper. Applying scientific and technical advances to care for pepper trees for sustainable development is necessary.
In particular, to increase the value of pepper, people need to produce organically and safely, not using fertilizers or drugs that affect the environment, and using organic fertilizers and biological drugs.
Also according to Mr. Tran Van Thanh, in terms of processing, people need to preserve according to the correct process and deeply process to create quality products from pepper.
After many years, pepper prices remained low, while the price of agricultural materials increased, so farmers could not afford to take care of them. In recent times, many garden owners have neglected their gardens, leading to their pepper gardens becoming older and no longer productive. This year’s pepper crop, households in the border district of Bu Dop in particular and Binh Phuoc province in general are very excited because prices have improved.
According to VietnamBiz.vn
