Coffee is the main crop of Dak Lak - the province with the largest coffee area in the country. However, in recent years, climate change has seriously affected crop productivity and quality, causing many farmers to worry, especially as the dry season approaches.
Ms. Vu Thi Doan (village 6, Cu Sue commune, Cu M'gar district, Dak Lak) shared that the weather is getting more and more erratic, no longer following the previous rules of rain and sunshine.
Sometimes the drought lasted for a long time, sometimes there were continuous storms, causing coffee to bloom unevenly, with many coffee beans, and output decreased.
Citing 2024, Ms. Doan said: "Last year, the dry season came early, causing coffee trees to wither. Despite being watered many times, the garden still did not recover because the temperature was too high, especially at noon. Due to the prolonged drought, my family's 5 sao of coffee can only harvest 1 ton".
Mr. Y Sin Nie, in Ea Kao commune, Buon Ma Thuot city, Dak Lak, said that the impact of climate change is becoming increasingly obvious. The dry season is longer, followed by heavy rain, greatly affecting the growth and development of coffee trees.
In the dry season of 2024, the drought lasts until mid-May, the underground water supply is exhausted, many ponds have no bottom. Coffee farmers have to struggle to find water sources for irrigation, many households even have to drill deeper wells, increasing production costs.
"Last year, my 1 hectare of coffee only harvested 2 tons of nuts, causing a heavy loss of crop. The weather was hot and humid, looking at the coffee garden with shooked leaves, withered and pained. My garden is far from the dam, and can only be watered with a well, but the water source is also dry. This year, I am worried that the drought will recur, Mr. Y Sin Nie shared.
According to agricultural experts, climate change is posing many major challenges for the Vietnamese coffee industry, putting farmers at risk. Without timely response measures, the risk of output reduction and economic instability is very high.
Faced with this situation, the Dak Lak agricultural sector has oriented to develop coffee in a sustainable direction.
The province has a policy of stably maintaining the existing area, while reviewing unsuitable areas to convert to more efficient crops.
Instead of chasing quantity, Dak Lak focuses on improving coffee quality. The province is also implementing the New Sustainable Coffee Project, with comprehensive support policies from production, processing to trade, to ensure the long-term development of this commodity industry.
