Choose good fruits to sell in moderation
jackfruit was once considered an easy-to-grow, easy-to-sell agricultural product, bringing in a good income for the people, but now it has become a big concern. The continuous decline in selling prices in recent times has caused many farmers in Vinh Long to fall into a difficult situation, some even having to abandon ripe fruit.
Mr. Nguyen Van Hung, a farmer in Tra On commune, said that type 1 jackfruit is currently priced from only 4,000 - 6,000 VND/kg, while jackfruit (not selected) is only from 2,000 - 2,500 VND/kg.
"This price is the lowest in the past few years, the more I sell, the more I lose, so I only pick a few good fruits, the rest I keep on the trees waiting for the price to increase before daring to harvest" - Mr. Hung shared.
In Long Ho commune, Mr. Tran Van Quy could not help but feel discouraged. On an area of over 1,000m2, he has been growing Thai jackfruit for many years. Previously, each crop could be sold for tens of millions of dong, but now, picking hundreds of kimchi only earns less than 1 million dong. "Fertilizer and pesticides are increasing in price every day, while the output is swollen. If the next crop does not have a better price, I will destroy half of the area and switch to other crops with less risk" - Mr. Quy said.
Many jackfruit growers in Vinh Long are also in a similar situation, as output depends too much on traders and fresh exporters, while the processing of products after harvest is not much, leading to difficult consumption.
Traders cautiously buy
Mr. Tran Van Cuong - a long-time retailer specializing in purchasing jackfruit in Vinh Long - said that currently, output is stagnant, the consumption market is unstable, so he only dares to buy in familiar gardens with limited output.
The cost of hiring people to cut and transport jackfruit is quite high, from 300,000 - 600,000 VND/person/day. Meanwhile, the selling price is unstable and not profitable, so I don't dare to buy goods in large quantities like before" - Mr. Cuong said. He added that previously, Thai jackfruit was strongly collected by traders to export to China by small-scale trade at a price of up to 30,000 - 60,000 VND/kg, but now, traders are "only buying in moderation".
According to statistics from the Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection of Vinh Long province, the whole province currently has about 4,180 hectares of jackfruit, most of which are Thai jackfruit varieties. In previous years, when jackfruit prices were high, the area expanded massively, mainly spontaneously. The professional sector has advised people not to continue expanding the area, instead need to improve farming techniques, control pests and diseases and cultivate in a safe direction, linking with businesses to export officially. jackfruit trees were once considered a "rich tree", now becoming a concern for many gardeners.
