Even when eating, you have to stop
Every day, Ms. Vo Thi Thuy Trang and her husband (53 years old, Thot Not district, Can Tho city ) watch the water to go to the river to cut water hyacinths, then bring them home to dry and sell to the company. On average, every day, she and her husband cut 500kg of fresh water hyacinth, and on days when they are not feeling well, they cut 300kg.
“This profession depends a lot on the water and the weather. When water is strong, water hyacinth is easier to cut. Some days the water rose early, the couple cut until noon and then returned, but on days the water rose late, the couple had to wait until noon to come out. After cutting, they returned home well after 5 pm. Everyone was sore all over because they had to bend over for many hours," Ms. Trang recounted.
However, according to Ms. Trang, the drying step is the most difficult. If it's sunny, it only takes about 5 days to dry, but in the rainy season it lasts up to 1-2 weeks.
"During the dry season it's very healthy, you don't have to run back and forth, take it out in the morning, then collect it in the afternoon and cover it to avoid getting wet from the dew. On the contrary, on rainy days like now, husband and wife have to watch, don't dare sleep at noon, and sometimes while eating, they have to put down their bowls and chopsticks to bring in water hyacinths," Ms. Trang shared.
Being old and having difficulty finding a job, Mr. Le Van Thi (68 years old, Co Do district, Can Tho city) also tries his best to cut and dry water hyacinths to earn an income to cover his living. “At my age, it is very difficult to find a job at a company. Besides, working as a hired laborer is too hard and my health doesn't allow it. Therefore, I just switched to cutting and drying water hyacinths," Mr. Thi said.
Mr. Thi said, the rainy season is the time when people dry water hyacinth the most. Because if you are negligent, the water hyacinth will be damaged and cannot be delivered to the company. If the sun is good, dry it for about a week and then it will dry. However, in the past few days, it has been raining and water hyacinths cannot be drained: "It's very tiring to dry it and bring it in during the rainy season. You still have to watch carefully, if there are a few dark clouds in the sky, you can move in immediately. Because of rainwater, the next day the water hyacinth will be damaged immediately and must be thrown away."
Extreme but stable income
Ms. Trang said that although this job is quite difficult, especially in the rainy season , the couple still tries hard to earn money to take care of their family. The quantity of water hyacinths sold by Mrs. Trang were all purchased by a company in Dong Thap.
On average, from 500kg of fresh water hyacinth, after drying, there will be about 50kg of dry water hyacinth left. If the price is right, dried water hyacinth is purchased by the company at 22,000 VND/kg, while in normal times it ranges from 17,000 - 19,000 VND/kg. Thus, on average every day, Ms. Trang and her husband earn from 850,000 to more than 1 million VND.
As for Mr. Thi, the work of cutting and drying water hyacinth is difficult, but in return, he has a stable income. The company buys as much as he makes. Accordingly, on average, Mr. Thi earns from 100,000 - 150,000 VND per day. With this money, he can cover his daily life.
