Eggplant prices in Yen Thanh have dropped to rock bottom, only 1,000 VND/kg

People in Nhan Tien hamlet, Tien Thanh commune harvest eggplant grown in their gardens. Photo: Xuan Hoang

People of Tien Thanh commune,Yen Thanh districtCurrently, the main eggplant harvest season is in progress. This is a locality with a tradition of growing eggplant for decades, so the eggplant yield here is high, the fruit is beautiful, and is favored by the market. However, according to research, the current price of eggplant purchased by traders for farmers in the garden has dropped to only 1,000 VND/kg.

Ms. Pham Thi Tan in Nhan Tien hamlet said that her family grows 1 sao of eggplant in the garden. In previous years, the lowest price of eggplant was 3,000 - 4,000 VND/kg, but now it is only 1,000 VND/kg.Eggplantfor harvesting from the beginning of January to the end of June, but to achieve high yield, after each harvest, NTP fertilizer must be applied, with the amount of 15 kg/sao. Every month, 4-5 harvests, each harvest yields 200 kg of fruit, with the price of 1,000 VND/kg, the income is 200,000 VND, while investing in 15 kg of fertilizer costs more than 200,000 VND, which is considered a break-even.

According to the people, due to proper investment in fertilizer, they can harvest a crop of eggplant every 4-5 days on an area. Photo: Xuan Hoang

"Only a few days into the season,tradersThe purchase price was 15,000 VND/kg, but then gradually decreased and is now only 1,000 VND/kg, not sure if it will decrease further in the coming days. Even though the income is not enough to cover expenses, the coffee must be harvested when it is ripe, otherwise the fruit will be old and traders will not buy it anymore," Ms. Tan said with concern.

Mr. Hoang Dinh Vinh and his wife grow 3 sao of eggplant. He added that in previous years, eggplant prices were high, and after each crop they could earn hundreds of millions of dong in profit. However, this year, if the price of 1,000 dong/kg continues, eggplant growers will not make a profit. Although the price of eggplant has dropped to a record low, traders still buy it all, so almost every day the family harvests in a rolling manner on 3 sao of eggplant.

Talking about the productivity of eggplant, people here said that there are no specific statistics after each crop, but 1 sao of land can yield 4-5 harvests/month, each harvest can yield 200 kg of fruit.

Eggplant grown on Tien Thanh land has beautiful fruit and good quality. Photo: Xuan Hoang

According to some coffee traders, most of the coffee after purchase is transported to cities for consumption, especially in the northern provinces. The reason for the sharp drop in price of coffee this year is because many other localities in the southern provinces grow a lot of coffee, leading to "oversupply".

Mr. Phan Van Vu - Chairman of Tien Thanh Commune People's Committee said: In the commune, especially Nhan Tien hamlet, there has been a tradition of growing eggplant for decades, because the sandy soil here is suitable for eggplant to produce good quality fruit, beautiful fruit, high yield. Each hectare of eggplant can yield over 1 ton of fruit/crop, compared to other crops, eggplant gives the highest yield in this locality. This year, the whole commune planted about 11 hectares of eggplant, concentrated in Nhan Tien hamlet, people mainly grow eggplant on home garden land. Like previous years, the selling price is stable, so even though it is a secondary crop, it gives the main income. However, this year, due to the rock bottom price of eggplant, the income of eggplant growers has decreased sharply, even without profit.

Traders buy coffee right in their gardens. Photo: Xuan Hoang

According to Mr. Nguyen Trong Huong - Director of Yen Thanh District Agricultural Service Center, eggplant is grown in several communes: Tien Thanh, Ma Thanh, Minh Thanh... but the most is Tien Thanh commune. This is a crop grown on fertile soil, with high productivity, bringing high economic efficiency to people, if the selling price is stable. However, in the main crop of this year, the price of eggplant has dropped to rock bottom, affecting people's income./.