These days, custard apple growing areas in Mai Son commune are entering the harvest season. On inter-village roads and along National Highway 6, people are busy harvesting and packaging; traders continuously come to the gardens to buy and take products for consumption.
In Lech village, Mr. Nguyen Quoc Hoi's family is busy harvesting 4 hectares of Thai custard apple and durian custard apple, which were converted from 2018.
Previously, the family grew corn, vegetables and traditional chewy custard apples, but the economic efficiency was low due to small fruits and easy pests and diseases. This year, the family plans to harvest about 80 tons of custard apples, selling price 30,000 - 40,000 VND/kg, profit of more than 1.5 billion VND.
The harvest atmosphere is also bustling at Me Lech Cooperative. Mr. Nguyen Huu Tu, Director of the Cooperative, said that the unit has 26 members with 50 hectares of custard apple, and is also linked with households on an area of more than 300 hectares.
The total custard apple output in the linked area is about 6,500 tons. To expand output, the cooperative combines many forms of consumption, including livestreaming and selling goods on e-commerce platforms.
Each day, the cooperative consumes about 2 tons through online channels and 5-6 tons through traders to bring to supermarkets and wholesale markets," Mr. Tu said.
Mr. Nguyen Tien Thanh, a trader in Chieng Sinh ward, said that every day he collects about 5-7 tons of custard apples from gardens in Mai Son, then transports them to provinces and Hanoi wholesale markets.
This year's custard apples are large, uniform, sweet, and fragrant, so they are favored by consumers. For many days, the amount of goods collected has not yet met the demand," Mr. Thanh said.
According to the People's Committee of Mai Son commune, the locality currently has more than 1,160 hectares of custard apples, including traditional dai custard apples, Thai custard apples, Dai custard apples and durian custard apples. Of which, more than 920 hectares have been harvested, with an estimated output of about 9,000 tons/year.
To improve productivity and quality, people are gradually changing farming methods. Techniques such as supplementary pollination, using organic fertilizers, biochemicals and fruit wrapping are widely applied. Thanks to that, custard apple yield has increased by about 30% compared to before.
Mr. Nguyen Anh Thu, Vice Chairman of Mai Son Commune People's Committee, said that custard apple trees are suitable for the local climate and soil, especially in mountainous and hilly areas with moderate slopes.
The locality will plan specialized farming areas, encourage the application of techniques and strengthen production and consumption links, improve quality, and maintain the Mai Son custard apple brand," Mr. Thu said.
This year's custard apple crop, many gardens yield heavy fruits from 0.8 - 1.3 kg/fruit. Products are consumed through many channels, from traders, wholesale markets to stores and direct sales points along National Highway 6.
Having been selling custard apples on digital platforms for many years, Ms. Do Le Thuy, Mai Son commune, receives about 100 - 200 orders per day via livestream and online channels. According to her, selling online helps expand the market, reduce intermediaries and consume custard apples faster.
Customers are increasingly favoring Mai Son custard apple because of its large, sweet, fragrant fruit and beautiful appearance. Selling online helps me proactively introduce products, finalize orders and bring custard apples from gardens to consumers," Ms. Thuy shared.
Not only bringing income to growers, the custard apple season also creates jobs for seasonal workers, traders, and purchasing and packaging facilities.
From the hillsides that were previously mainly planted with short-term crops, many areas in Mai Son are now greened by custard apple gardens with high economic value.
Expanding growing areas, improving quality and diversifying consumption channels are helping people increase income, towards sustainable development.
