In early May, in Cam Lam district - known as the "capital of Australian mangoes" of Khanh Hoa province - a gloomy atmosphere covered many mango gardens.
Although entering the main harvest season, many gardeners are not bored with picking fruit, because the price of mangoes on the market is too low, not enough to cover the cost of harvesting and transportation.
According to people's feedback, the price of Australian mangoes currently ranges from 6,000 - 8,000 VND/kg, while a few years ago, it was up to 40,000 - 50,000 VND/kg. The current price has caused many farming households to suffer heavy losses, even being forced to let the mangoes ripen in the garden.
Mr. Vo Xuan Hien, a mango grower in Cam Thanh Bac commune, shared: "This year, the continuous unseasonal rain in the flowering period has caused the fruit set rate to drop sharply.
With more than 1.7 hectares of mango, my family once sold it for 25,000 - 30,000 VND/kg. Now traders only pay 6,000 - 8,000 VND, not enough to cover the cost of hiring workers and transportation. I had to abandon nearly 4 tons of mangoes on the trees, accepting a loss of about 30 million VND".
Not only Mr. Hien's family, similar situations are happening in many mango growing areas in the area such as Cam Hoa, Cam Tan, Cam An Bac, Cam Hiep Nam...
Many years ago, people here lived stably thanks to this specialty agricultural product. However, this year's mango crop is causing many people to fall into trouble.
A representative of the Farmers' Association of Cam Lam district said that the unit is coordinating with local authorities to count the remaining mango output in gardeners. From there, a plan will be proposed to support product consumption for people.
According to the study, in recent times, the authorities have stepped up propaganda on the application of growing area codes and traceability codes to increase export value.
However, the number of Australian mango growers and businesses participating in this model is still limited, leading to unstable output and heavy dependence on domestic traders.
In the context of climate change increasingly affecting agricultural production, along with constant fluctuations in the market, farmers are in great need of support in terms of sustainable output and application of modern farming techniques.
Otherwise, even key growing areas like Cam Lam will find it difficult to maintain the "glow" that once existed with Australian mango trees.
