Good yield but farmers are less happy
In recent days, farmers in Ca Mau province have been urgently harvesting the Winter-Spring rice crop completely. This is considered the most favorable production crop of the year, so people expect a big win in both yield and selling price. However, the reality is not as expected because rice prices have decreased compared to many previous crops.
In Phuoc Long commune, in the 2025 - 2026 Winter-Spring crop, farmers planted more than 5,100ha, and have now harvested over 4,000ha. Thanks to favorable weather and controlled pests and diseases, rice is developing well, with long ears and firm grains. However, rice prices fell sharply right before the harvest day, making the joy not complete.
Many rice areas have passed the harvest date, but traders buy sparingly. In prolonged hot weather conditions, ripe rice if left in the field for a long time will reduce yield and loss of output.
Mr. Tran Van Buoi, residing in My 1 hamlet, Phuoc Long commune, said that his family cultivates more than 1ha of Dai Thom rice. According to calculations, after deducting expenses, this crop's profit is insignificant.
Currently, traders buy at about 6,000 VND/kg. The yield is estimated at about 800kg/cong (1,000m2), but after deducting all expenses, we will probably only break even," Mr. Buoi said.
In the same locality, Mr. Pham Hiep Phong, who is harvesting OM18 rice, said that the expected yield will reach over 800kg/cong. However, the selling price decreased while all expenses increased, causing profits to be much lower than in previous years.
Costs increase, output is unstable
If in previous years, traders often came to the fields to deposit early, and purchasing boats anchored waiting for transportation bustlingly, this year the purchasing atmosphere is quite quiet.
Mr. Danh Thoai, residing in My Tuong hamlet, shared that the Winter-Spring crop is usually a "solid crop" because the yield is stable. But this year, rice prices decreased sharply right at the time of harvest, while the cost of hiring combine harvesters increased by several hundred thousand VND per cong, causing profits to decrease sharply.
This crop, after deducting all expenses, each crop will probably make a profit of about 1 million VND," Mr. Thoai said.
According to many farmers, combine harvester owners charge labor costs increased to 450,000-500,000 VND/cong, about 150,000 VND higher than the previous crop. Therefore, many rice fields are slow to harvest because people and traders have not agreed on prices.
Mr. Tran Cong Son, residing in Binh Le hamlet, Vinh Phuoc commune, said that agricultural materials throughout the crop season also increased rapidly.
All expenses have increased, and by the harvest season, rice prices have decreased again. This crop will probably only make a profit," Mr. Son said.
According to the Department of Agriculture and Environment of Ca Mau province, the 2025-2026 Winter-Spring crop, the whole province planted more than 93,000 hectares, and so far has harvested over 50,000 hectares, with an average yield of nearly 6.5 tons/ha. The current price of fresh rice ranges from 5,500-6,100 VND/kg depending on the variety.
Faced with the above situation, localities are actively supporting consumption connections. Mr. Nguyen Thanh Hoang - Chairman of Vinh Phuoc Commune People's Committee - said that the locality has contacted businesses and cooperatives inside and outside the province to purchase rice for farmers; and at the same time build a project for storage and processing of rice to stabilize long-term output.
At the same time, specialized sectors organize training and guidance for farmers to adjust farming processes, reduce production costs, improve efficiency, towards reducing the pressure of "bumper crop, price drop" repeated for many years.
