Still want to stick to the orange pillar
After a long time, the price of oranges in Tra Vinh has dropped to 3,000 VND/kg, for nearly 2 months now, the price has increased to 4,000 - 5,000 VND/kg. However, although the price of oranges is still unpredictable, making growers worried, many farmers still want to continue growing oranges.
Mr. Tran Thanh Phong, a farmer in Cau Ke district, said that his family has been growing oranges on an area of over 1ha since 2013 and is familiar with the farming technique of this crop. He plans to plant an additional 0.5 hectares of residential land in the hope that when many people switch to growing other trees, the supply of oranges will decrease, thereby increasing the price of oranges again.
"Growing oranges is very difficult at the moment, but my family has invested a lot in this orange garden. If we switch to growing other trees, it will take us a lot of time and money to improve the land," said Mr. Phong.
Similarly, Mr. Nguyen Van Binh, another farmer, said that he is used to growing oranges, if he switches to other trees, it will take time to learn from the beginning. "Although the price of oranges is low, I believe that the price of oranges will change in the near future," Mr. Binh added.
Many other farmers also have the same view with Mr. Phong and Mr. Binh, they believe that although the price of oranges may decrease in a short time, in the long term, this type of tree still has the potential to bring high profits.
Organically growing oranges, VietGAP
Speaking with Lao Dong, Mr. Tran Truong Giang - Director of the Department of Agriculture and Environment of Tra Vinh province - said that the area of orange cultivation nationwide is currently very large, over 100,000 hectares, in Tra Vinh alone there are over 4,600 hectares, an increase of more than 1,000 hectares compared to the beginning of 2024.
Many localities produce on a large scale, with low production costs. Along with that, many areas are planted according to organic standards, VietGAP makes it difficult for Tra Vinh oranges to compete.
According to Mr. Giang, the agricultural sector has recommended that people should not expand the area of orange cultivation, but instead switch to other crops to improve production efficiency.
Mr. Giang also said that if people do not want to convert, they should produce oranges according to organic processes, VietGAP, build a brand to improve competitiveness. The Department of Agriculture and Environment will continue to monitor, research, provide information, and support farmers in finding markets.
"We understand that converting crops is not easy, but this is the best solution to help people avoid losses," said Mr. Giang.
