The nearly 130-hectare farm in Ninh Tan commune, Ninh Hoa town was built by Mr. Nguyen Minh Thanh (44 years old) about 4 years ago. This area is well-planned with areas for growing crops, raising livestock and an irrigation lake system.
Originally from Nam Dinh, Mr. Thanh came to Nha Trang to start a career in 1998, working in the field of photography and frequently traveling abroad. During a trip to China, he was fascinated by the circular agriculture model.
From this base, he decided to return to Khanh Hoa and switch to agriculture. After accumulating a small amount of capital, he searched for an area with a favorable climate and bought 8 hectares of land to build his first farm from a local resident.
The land was formerly a tobacco growing area for a business, but after farmers switched to growing acacia, rice, and wheat and cultivated it incorrectly, the land became poor in nutrients and barren.
To improve the soil, Mr. Thanh prioritizes planting trees using natural methods. Weeds grow and die naturally, creating microorganisms to improve soil nutrients. He also uses NPK fertilizer and agricultural by-products such as sugarcane bagasse to enhance the microflora.
However, he encountered many failures due to lack of agricultural knowledge, such as planting trees incorrectly and lacking electricity and water. The most memorable time was when he planted 2,500 coconut trees but only 100 survived, causing him to lose tens of billions of dong.
However, he persevered, looking for people with the same passion for farming, staying up all night to learn more farming methods, and investing in upgrading the irrigation system.
By 2021, the farm had expanded to nearly 130 hectares. After 4 years, the land has recovered and become fertile. The farm currently has 60 hectares of mango with 13,000 trees of various types such as Australian mango, Cat Hoa Loc, and Tu Quy. He applies a sprinkler irrigation system to each tree and grows organically.
The farm's natural grass is maintained to protect the soil, limit erosion and also provide feed for livestock. Last year, some areas of Australian mangoes bore fruit and he harvested dozens of tons.
In addition to mangoes, the farm also has 2,500 coconut trees, 10 hectares of orchards growing a variety of fruit trees from three regions, a conservation area for native vegetables, and 30 hectares of regenerated forest. He also established a pond system for irrigation and freshwater fish, contributing to creating a biosphere for swiftlets.
The livestock area covers an area of 10 hectares, raising thousands of poultry, cattle, bees, crickets, black soldier flies, calcium worms, geckos... Veterinary hygiene is focused on to ensure the health of the animals.
He also uses waste from livestock to produce fertilizer and uses agricultural by-products on the farm as animal feed, reducing costs. Thanks to that, the farm has started to make a profit, with an annual revenue of more than 2 billion VND.
Currently, the farm has 35 local workers, including 4 agricultural engineers in charge of farming processes, planting methods, animal husbandry and resource management.
Mr. Thanh said that in the future, when farming and livestock farming reach a concentrated scale, the farm will bring even higher economic efficiency. He hopes to combine tourism and share experiences with many people, contributing to the development of the locality.
Ms. Vuong Thi Thu Chung - President of the Farmers' Association of Ninh Tan commune, commented that Mr. Thanh's farm following the circular agriculture direction is a trend of sustainable agricultural development. Increasing the scale and combining tourism in the future will bring economic efficiency and create more jobs for local workers.
