The Salt Fields Lie Abandoned
Kỳ Hà Commune (Kỳ Anh Town) was once a renowned salt production hub, but now dozens of hectares of salt fields lie abandoned, with weeds growing rampant.
Diêm dân Trần Văn Thắng (resident of Bắc Hà Village, Kỳ Hà Commune) shared that over the past few years, due to the difficulty in selling salt and low prices, many households have become disillusioned and abandoned the profession, leading to an increasing area of abandoned salt fields.
According to Mr. Thắng, those who still cling to the profession of salt production are mainly elderly individuals who are unable to work in other jobs. His family, including himself, is still managing to produce salt on 2 sào of land.
“Even with diligent effort, we can only earn 15 to 20 million đồng per harvest” - Mr. Thắng shared.
Mr. Lê Văn Luyện, Secretary of the Party Committee of Kỳ Hà Commune, stated that salt production was a traditional profession in Kỳ Hà Commune, which once provided a primary source of income for diêm dân.
At its peak, the entire commune had around 1,000 to 1,200 households engaged in salt production, covering a total area of 73ha, and supplying over 10,000 tons of salt to the market each year.
However, from 2016 to the present, salt production in Kỳ Hà Commune has declined significantly in terms of area, production volume, and number of households engaged in the profession.
Currently, only around 70-80 households are still clinging to salt production, covering an area of approximately 15ha, with an estimated annual production of 1,000-1,200 tons of salt.
In Đỉnh Bàn Commune (Thạch Hà), a similar situation is occurring, with dozens of hectares of salt fields lying abandoned. The salt fields are overgrown with weeds.
On August 6, Mr. Phạm Công Tùng, Chairman of the People's Committee of Đỉnh Bàn Commune, stated that the commune currently has 49ha of salt fields, but most of them are abandoned. Currently, the commune has only 23 households engaged in salt production, covering an area of 2ha, a decrease of 1ha from 2023.
Mr. Trương Bá Khanh, Chairman of the People's Committee of Hộ Độ Commune (Lộc Hà District), reported that the commune currently has 40 households engaged in salt production, covering an area of 3ha out of a total of 120ha of salt fields.
“Salt from the south is now widely available and cheaper, making it difficult for our locality to sell salt. No one wants to take up the profession anymore; only the elderly, the elderly, or those with poor health who cannot work in other jobs can cling to the profession of salt production”, Mr. Khanh shared.
Converting to Aquaculture or Service Industry
According to Mr. Lê Văn Luyện, Secretary of the Party Committee of Kỳ Hà Commune, due to the difficulties in salt production and the increasing area of abandoned salt fields, the people and the authorities have proposed to the higher levels to convert the salt fields into aquaculture or to develop them into residential areas. Only areas with high productivity will be designated for continued investment in industrial salt production.
Mr. Trương Bá Khanh, Chairman of the People's Committee of Hộ Độ Commune, stated that due to the difficulties and uncertainty of salt production, the commune has also proposed to convert 30ha of the 120ha of salt fields into aquaculture and commercial services to avoid wasting land.
In Đỉnh Bàn Commune, the local authorities are still promoting and encouraging people to expand salt production, as it is believed to provide better income than growing rice. However, contrary to the authorities' wishes, the area of salt production in the commune is still decreasing year by year.
