Dak Lak is the coffee capital of the country with over 212,000 hectares. At this time, the locality is in the coffee harvest season. However, prolonged rains have caused difficulties for farmers.
Mr. Y Ben Bya, Ea Kao Commune, Buon Ma Thuot City (Dak Lak) said that due to the influence of the weather, this year the coffee flowers and fruits are late. Therefore, the harvest season for the 2024-2025 crop is later than every year. The coffee ripens late, so the harvest falls during a period of prolonged rain.
"My family has more than 1 hectare of coffee that is ready for harvest but is having trouble because of the rain. While picking, it rained, I had to roll up the tarp and go home, because it is very difficult to pick when it is wet in the rain, and the coffee berries that get wet in the rain are very susceptible to rotting and fungus" - Mr. Y Ben Bya shared.
The prolonged rain makes Mr. Y Ben Bya worried. According to him, overripe coffee will fall. Farmers will not only lose yield but also reduce the quality of coffee. Not to mention, the garden will be exhausted, affecting the flowering and fruiting process for the next crop.
The rain not only disrupted the harvesting process, but also made the drying process difficult. Ms. H Mora Eban, in Ea Tu commune, Buon Ma Thuot city (Dak Lak), dried her coffee for more than a week but it was still not dry.
She said that for many years, her family has been drying coffee in the sun. When the coffee is picked, if it is sunny, she only needs to dry it on the concrete yard for a few days. But if it rains, it is very persistent, sometimes she dries it for 10 days, even half a month and it still does not dry.
Ms. H Mora’s family has more than 3.5 hectares of coffee but has not finished harvesting yet due to the weather. Looking at the coffee yard soaked with rainwater, Ms. H Mora Eban is restless. Occasionally, she goes out to look at the sky, waiting for the sun to appear.
“With the coffee so wet, I have no choice but to raise the bed to drain the water. Now I can’t dry it or bring it inside. I just hope the sun will come out. If left for too long, the coffee will get moldy on the skin, which will gradually affect the quality,” Ms. H Mora worried.
Ms. H Mora added that it is very difficult to harvest coffee during the rainy season. Because the cost of harvesting increases, the quality of the coffee is also affected.
According to the forecast of the hydrometeorological sector, from November 2024 to January 2025, there is a possibility of rain in Dak Lak province, affecting people's lives and production.
In the official dispatch on coffee production, harvesting, processing and consumption in the 2024-2025 crop year, the People's Committee of Dak Lak province noted this issue.
The Provincial People's Committee requested localities to guide farmers to prepare drying yards and dryers to prevent prolonged rain during harvest time from affecting coffee quality.
