No use of chemicals
According to the Vietnam Organic Agriculture Association, the development rate of organic farming is increasing. In 2017, the country had about 76,000 hectares of organic agriculture, by 2020, this figure increased by more than 415,000 hectares. However, organic and natural products have extremely high-cost prices, unattractive appearance, and poor color, but the nutrition and quality are higher in return.
Ms. Tran Thi Tuyen, who grows orange following natural agriculture in Nghe An Province for more than two years, said that when she first started growing orange, many local farmers assessed that her orange trees would not develop. Because all other farmers fertilize, mow grass, and spray pesticides on their orange groves whereas none of those is applied on hers. She shared that the grass layer is the habitat for insects, and natural enemies create a natural balance without harming the orange trees. Besides, the fallen oranges do not need to be removed, but to leave them decomposing themselves and becoming nutrients for orange trees. Although the productivity is not high compared to other orange groves, in return, it helps her reduce the cost of pesticides.
With an extremely large growing area of organic coffee, Mr. Thai Nhu Hiep, Director of Vinh Hiep Co., Ltd., acknowledged that organic products are an inevitable trend for sustainable agricultural development. In Vietnam, organic and natural agriculture still encounters many limitations. On the one hand, farmers do not have techniques for large-scale production. On the other hand, the number of fertilizers and bio-products for organic farming remains small and at a high cost. Similarly, Mr. Le Van Toan, Manager of tropical vegetable production at Organica Farm in District 2 in Ho Chi Minh City, said that the organic production model is mainly small, weak chain linking, and high costs so it is unable to be expanded. To reduce costs, farmers need to adopt sustainable farming and ranching models to make use of by-products.
In fact, many stores advertise their products as organic to sell them at high prices, but their quality is still in doubt. Mr. Nguyen Dinh Tung, Director of Vina T&T Group Company, said that many shops sell organic food with various international organic certifications, making it difficult for authorities to supervise. Therefore, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) needs to develop Vietnamese organic certification with the same standards as foreign ones so that people can participate in production and export. At the same time, there should be measures to manage stores selling self-proclaimed organic products.
Supporting to reduce costs
According to the MARD, the global consumption market of organic products has grown steadily, with an estimated scale of more than US$80 billion per year. Consumers in developed countries, such as the US, Japan, and the EU, are now very fond of organic products not only because of their superiority in health protection but also because of their contribution to the protection of the ecological environment and minimization of impacts of climate change. Therefore, the export potential for organic agricultural products remains tremendous. In recent years, the biotechnology industry has developed strongly and widely applied to meet the requirements of organic agriculture. Mr. Tran Thanh Nam, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, shared that Vietnam has a plentiful workforce. Practical experience and creativity in agricultural production are great advantages for developing organic agriculture, which is labor-intensive. For organic agriculture to develop sustainably, the agricultural sector needs to choose suitable growing areas and prioritize the development of local specialties.
In fact, there are still many natural agriculture models that do not have organic certification, making consumption difficult. Along with that, many stores also mix substandard products with organic products. There are even cases in which they have already got organic certifications, but later on, the production does not meet the standards. Mr. Ha Phuc Mich, Chairman of the Vietnam Organic Agriculture Association, said that the MARD has built a project to develop organic agriculture and an action plan. The area of organic agriculture is growing without substance and is difficult to control. Human resource training for many years has not had the policy of accessing organic agricultural materials from all levels. Therefore, the ministry is actively implementing the organic agriculture development project for the 2020-2030 period, with the goal that the area of organic agriculture will reach 1.5-2 percent of the total agricultural area by 2025, and 2.5-3 percent by 2030.
According to agricultural experts, for organic agriculture to be sustainable, farmers must be trained. The State should strengthen the introduction and construction of distribution networks, and promote trade, and at the same time support units to assess the organic product samples. Moreover, to produce large-scale organic agriculture, it is essential to have professional and qualified supply services for organic farming materials, such as fertilizers, animal feed, herbal pesticides, and bio-products.
According to the Vietnam Organic Agriculture Association, the development rate of organic farming is increasing. In 2017, the country had about 76,000 hectares of organic agriculture, by 2020, this figure increased by more than 415,000 hectares. However, organic and natural products have extremely high-cost prices, unattractive appearance, and poor color, but the nutrition and quality are higher in return.
Ms. Tran Thi Tuyen, who grows orange following natural agriculture in Nghe An Province for more than two years, said that when she first started growing orange, many local farmers assessed that her orange trees would not develop. Because all other farmers fertilize, mow grass, and spray pesticides on their orange groves whereas none of those is applied on hers. She shared that the grass layer is the habitat for insects, and natural enemies create a natural balance without harming the orange trees. Besides, the fallen oranges do not need to be removed, but to leave them decomposing themselves and becoming nutrients for orange trees. Although the productivity is not high compared to other orange groves, in return, it helps her reduce the cost of pesticides.
With an extremely large growing area of organic coffee, Mr. Thai Nhu Hiep, Director of Vinh Hiep Co., Ltd., acknowledged that organic products are an inevitable trend for sustainable agricultural development. In Vietnam, organic and natural agriculture still encounters many limitations. On the one hand, farmers do not have techniques for large-scale production. On the other hand, the number of fertilizers and bio-products for organic farming remains small and at a high cost. Similarly, Mr. Le Van Toan, Manager of tropical vegetable production at Organica Farm in District 2 in Ho Chi Minh City, said that the organic production model is mainly small, weak chain linking, and high costs so it is unable to be expanded. To reduce costs, farmers need to adopt sustainable farming and ranching models to make use of by-products.
In fact, many stores advertise their products as organic to sell them at high prices, but their quality is still in doubt. Mr. Nguyen Dinh Tung, Director of Vina T&T Group Company, said that many shops sell organic food with various international organic certifications, making it difficult for authorities to supervise. Therefore, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) needs to develop Vietnamese organic certification with the same standards as foreign ones so that people can participate in production and export. At the same time, there should be measures to manage stores selling self-proclaimed organic products.
Supporting to reduce costs
According to the MARD, the global consumption market of organic products has grown steadily, with an estimated scale of more than US$80 billion per year. Consumers in developed countries, such as the US, Japan, and the EU, are now very fond of organic products not only because of their superiority in health protection but also because of their contribution to the protection of the ecological environment and minimization of impacts of climate change. Therefore, the export potential for organic agricultural products remains tremendous. In recent years, the biotechnology industry has developed strongly and widely applied to meet the requirements of organic agriculture. Mr. Tran Thanh Nam, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, shared that Vietnam has a plentiful workforce. Practical experience and creativity in agricultural production are great advantages for developing organic agriculture, which is labor-intensive. For organic agriculture to develop sustainably, the agricultural sector needs to choose suitable growing areas and prioritize the development of local specialties.
In fact, there are still many natural agriculture models that do not have organic certification, making consumption difficult. Along with that, many stores also mix substandard products with organic products. There are even cases in which they have already got organic certifications, but later on, the production does not meet the standards. Mr. Ha Phuc Mich, Chairman of the Vietnam Organic Agriculture Association, said that the MARD has built a project to develop organic agriculture and an action plan. The area of organic agriculture is growing without substance and is difficult to control. Human resource training for many years has not had the policy of accessing organic agricultural materials from all levels. Therefore, the ministry is actively implementing the organic agriculture development project for the 2020-2030 period, with the goal that the area of organic agriculture will reach 1.5-2 percent of the total agricultural area by 2025, and 2.5-3 percent by 2030.
According to agricultural experts, for organic agriculture to be sustainable, farmers must be trained. The State should strengthen the introduction and construction of distribution networks, and promote trade, and at the same time support units to assess the organic product samples. Moreover, to produce large-scale organic agriculture, it is essential to have professional and qualified supply services for organic farming materials, such as fertilizers, animal feed, herbal pesticides, and bio-products.
