However, up to this point, although the price of pepper has been very low, many farmers continue to expand the area under which pepper is grown, and the risk of rescuing this crop is present. The story of planting on the movement has been mentioned many times, happening with many types of agricultural products but there has not been a thorough solution.
According to the Department of Crop Production, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), in 2015, pepper reached 200,000 VND / kg, 4 times higher than the price.
Therefore, in 2010, if the whole country planted only 51,500 hectares of pepper, by the end of 2017, this figure would have reached over 152,000 hectares, an increase of 196.3% compared to 2010 and exceeding the 2020 plan by 100,000 hectares. . It is this huge profit that has caused some farmers to expand their area beyond the planning.
Mr. Le Van Duc, Deputy Director of the Department of Crop Production, said farmers diversified the area by intercropping pepper into coffee, with about 15-20% intercropping.
It is alarming that at present, although pepper prices are low, only 61,000 to 62,000 VND / kg, many ethnic minority households in the Central Highlands provinces, mainly Dak Lak, Dak Nong, Gia Lai … continue. spontaneous expansion of pepper area.
Data from the Department of Crop Production shows that in 2017 alone, ethnic minorities in Dak Lak, Dak Nong, Gia Lai and Lam Dong newly planted more than 16,207 hectares. In particular, Dak Lak is the locality with the largest new pepper growing area with over 5,500 ha.
| Massively growing without planning, plus the low price of pepper, farmers faced great losses. |
Constraint of breaking the planning, rushing to cultivate pepper in both unsuitable land areas, using many varieties of pepper of unknown origin … makes every year the Central Highlands provinces have thousands of hectares of pepper pests and diseases. Quick death, slow death cause great damage to farmers.
Most worrisome, according to the Vietnam Pepper Association, due to the oversupply, the world price of pepper in general and the price of pepper in Vietnam have continuously decreased sharply in recent years.
Currently, pepper prices in Vietnam are only more than 60,000 VND / kg, close to the average production cost of the whole country is more than 49,000 VND / kg. If the current price trend continues, we are at risk of “rescuing” pepper, while compared to other agricultural products, pepper is the product that can not be used much in meals. Vietnamese people.
In fact, more than a year ago, pepper prices were also low and many households were facing the risk of bankruptcy.
At that time, the Pepper Association also had to offer 7 emergency measures to “rescue” pepper such as pushing agricultural extension work to improve the qualifications of growers, tending, harvesting, processing pepper. Pepper, especially cultivation level according to VietGAP, Global GAP, farming towards intercropping; Central and local agricultural sector specialized agencies and pepper industry enterprises are all responsible for having clean pepper in accordance with standards of import markets; strictly control the production and distribution of plant protection drugs; organize chain production of pepper, have certification of origin of growing areas, reduce intermediaries in purchasing raw materials to be able to control quality, meet requirements of large and valuable markets. as high as America and Europe …
And the most core solution proposed by the Pepper Association is to plan the country's stable pepper growing area at 100,000 ha. However, up to now, the number of pepper growing areas has soared to 152,000ha.
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong emphasized that localities need to focus on reducing areas in areas that are not suitable for pepper plants, not planting new ones in dead areas.
Mr. Cuong also noted that localities should promote communication and advocacy for farmers to understand that world pepper production has exceeded demand, pepper is a spice so the amount of use is limited … should not develop oh. Acreage area and output. If not quickly restructured, the pepper industry will not only be lagging behind, but will also disrupt the industry, no buyers, reduce product reputation.
According to the Department of Crop Production, Vietnamese pepper accounts for about 58% of the world export market. Although it is a leading exporter, it is not yet the leading processing and trading place in the world. Therefore, it is necessary to continue to support the development of a chain-based linkage model, thus piloting the pepper industry to develop sustainably.
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