People are worried about theft.
Mr. Pham Huu Danh, residing in Phu Xuan commune, Krong Nang district (Dak Lak) said: "Most of our people have their main source of income from coffee trees. There are households that have been growing coffee trees for 30 - 40 years now.
During the harvest season, many people are worried about the rampant coffee theft. Thieves often take advantage of the darkness to enter coffee plantations to steal or transport some pre-processed bags.
"Even though we set up guard camps in the fields, the growing area is too large for people to control, and thieves still sneak in to steal agricultural products," said Mr. Danh.
The price of coffee purchased at the garden in the Central Highlands provinces is fluctuating between 115,000 - 120,000 VND/kg. This is a high price, farmers can effectively improve their income.
In the past few days, Mr. Do Van Phu, also residing in Phu Xuan commune, has moved his belongings to his family’s coffee plantation to live and work to protect the crops. Only when all the coffee is harvested will Mr. Phu’s life return to normal.
"Even though I have security cameras, I am still very cautious because my income for the whole year and the funds to reinvest next season depend on this coffee harvest," Mr. Phu shared.
Night Patrol
Mr. Ngan Van Cuong, Head of the Security Team of Village 12, Phu Xuan Commune, said: "The Security Team of Village 12 consists of 3 people. During the coffee harvest season, we coordinate with the Commune Police and the self-governing inter-family group to start patrolling the roads in the area from 7 p.m. every night."
Especially in places where there are many coffee plantations, the patrol team works until 3-4am. During peak periods, when we discover thieves, we go until 5-6am before returning home to rest" - Mr. Cuong shared.
Major Pham Minh Ty - Head of Phu Xuan Commune Police (Krong Nang District) said that during the coffee harvest season, the commune police regularly urge and remind their colleagues to participate in protecting security and order, and stick to the assigned area.
Authorities prevent theft by checking and capturing household registrations, registering temporary residence and temporary absence for people from other localities coming to harvest coffee.
"From the money contributed by the people, the commune police will install 3-8 more security cameras in each village to support the prevention of agricultural product theft. To date, the whole commune has installed more than 100 security cameras," said Major Ty.
Not only in Krong Nang, through research, after its launch on July 1, 2024, the grassroots security force in Dak Lak has actively coordinated to patrol and protect high-value gardens, especially during the agricultural harvest season.
