Precious breeding pig farm in the mountains and forests of Cao Bang
Duc Chinh Grade I Breeding Farm - under Cao Bang Breeding and feed Joint Stock Company - was once one of the leading establishments in preserving and developing rare genetic resources of the native pigs. Established in 1973, the farm has a total area of 3.2 hectares, with a barn system of 2,800m2, including 2 breeding areas for domestic sows, 1 breeding area for male sows and a standard quarantine area.
During the heyday, before 2019, Duc Chinh pig farm was a place to raise and develop hundreds of purely Mong Cai pigs and Tai Na black pigs - a typical native pig breed of Cao Bang province. The farm maintains a herd of more than 300 Mong Cai starlings, nearly 200 Tau Na starlings and dozens of precious domestic male pigs, with the task of maintaining and conserving endemic genetic resources that are difficult to find on the market.
Not only focusing on pigs, the farm also produces and supplies poultry of all kinds with guaranteed quality, serving the needs of livestock farming in and outside the province. On average, each year, the farm provides about 5,000 breeding pigs and commercial pigs, while creating jobs for dozens of officers and technical workers in the agricultural and livestock sector.
However, the turning point came in June 2019 when African swine fever broke out fiercely, sweeping across the entire herd of pigs with 1,666 pigs destroyed. The total weight of the destroyed pigs was up to more than 40 tons, causing a loss of over 10 billion VND.
After this incident, Cao Bang Livestock Seed and Food Joint Stock Company did not have enough resources to re-herd. Duc Chinh Pork Farm has officially "frozen" its operations, falling into a state of abandonment for many years, and workers have to leave the place they used to be attached to to to find a new livelihood.
A big question mark for gene conservation
The current actual records of the reporter show that the desolate scene still covers the pig farm that was once bustling. Weeds grow wildly, facilities are seriously degraded. Some rows of barns show signs of being renovated and the sign "Lam Anh Agricultural Cooperative" is hung in front of the farm gate.
Local people said that after the 2019 epidemic, the camp was abandoned. Recently, they saw Lam Anh Cooperative bringing pigs to raise.
Talking to reporters, Mr. Vo Xuan Dong - representative of the State capital at Cao Bang Livestock Seed and Food Joint Stock Company - confirmed that the farm still has regular caregivers. The appearance of Lam Anh Cooperative in the pig farm area is likely to be a temporary storage activity.
According to the investigation, the reason why the farm cannot recover from the epidemic is not only due to the damage caused by the epidemic, but also due to the prolonged financial difficulties of the management company. The company is currently in the process of divesting from State capital, leading to the inability to invest new or continue to maintain seed conservation programs.
The story of Duc Chinh Pork Farm is not only a regret about an effective livestock model, but also raises big questions about the strategy for preserving rare native animal genetic resources. Pork varieties such as Tu Pa or Mong Cai - once preserved in the farm - are part of the local biological heritage. Letting conservation facilities fall into a state of prolonged disrepair will be a great loss not only economically but also in terms of long-term genetic value.
In the context of increasingly complex epidemics and the need to restructure the agricultural sector, the restoration of farms like Duc Chinh - despite difficulties - still needs to be seriously considered.
