Cam Quy Hop is out of its prime

Orange garden covered with sugarcane and corn

To the key area of ​​Vinh orangeQuy Hop districtOn a mid-November day, the bustling scene of orange traders buying and selling oranges is completely gone. The orange farms of tens of hectares, laden with fruit a few years ago, are now replaced by sugarcane fields and rows of biomass corn ready for harvest. Along the main roads of the orange region, occasionally you can see a few orange gardens, but no one cares, because the quality of the oranges is too poor, tasting sour.

Mr. Hau's orange garden in Tho Thanh hamlet, Minh Hop commune is no longer invested in and cared for as before. Photo: Quang An

Visiting the orange garden of Mr. Hau and Ms. Huyen in Tho Thanh hamlet, Minh Hop commune, the whole orange garden still has about 150 yellow-heart Xa Doai orange trees. Mr. Hau said that all the orange trees were infected with pests and diseases, so he did not invest in taking care of them anymore, leaving them to grow on their own. Therefore, the oranges are harvested but are only a little bigger than lemons, do not have the characteristic sweetness and aroma as before, traders only buy them for 3,000 - 4,000 VND/kg, and cannot even be sold, leaving them all over the garden.

“Many families in the neighborhood have destroyed their orange trees and switched to growing short-term crops that provide steady income. Therefore, the family will soon dig up all of these orange trees and switch to growing corn or sugarcane to improve the soil. After 4-5 years, we will consider replanting orange trees,” Mr. Hau shared.

Oranges are heavily infected with pests and diseases, productivity has decreased sharply. Photo: Quang An

Mr. Nguyen Cong Bien - owner of an orange farm of more than 1 hectare belonging to Xuan Thanh Agricultural One Member Co., Ltd. said that his family's orange farm has been harvested since 2019, the peak of the 2020 orange season brought in hundreds of millions of VND/ha, but in 2021, the orange garden seriously deteriorated. When the size of a lemon began to fall off in large numbers, by harvest time only about 20% of the fruit remained, but the quality was poor, leading to losses. Therefore, at the end of 2021, the family decided to destroy the entire orange farm to grow biomass corn, leaving only a few dozen PQ tangerine trees.

“Growing corn three times a year brings in over 100 million VND in income. But more importantly, we can improve the land, let it rest, and control pests and diseases. Later, we can switch to growing oranges and regain the Vinh orange brand; however, it will take at least 4-5 more years,” said Mr. Bien.

Mr. Bien's orange garden has now been replaced by biomass corn fields, in the distance are PQ tangerine and orange trees that have been completely cut down. Photo: Xuan Hoang

Our observations also show that on Highway 48, through Minh Hop Commune, there are a few places selling Quy Hop oranges, but the quantity is small, and the oranges are not eye-catching. The most beautiful type costs 30,000 VND/kg, the lowest is 10,000 VND/kg, and the number of buyers can be counted on the fingers.

Traders said that, like previous years, in November, they buy tons of oranges from local people every day to ship to customers near and far, but now, they only buy a few hundred kilos a day, and sell them on Highway 48, but it is difficult to sell because the oranges are not as beautiful and delicious as before. Because the quantity sold is small, orange garden owners do not have orange packaging with information about the orange farm printed on it like before. This is also the reason why many customers are suspicious about the origin of the oranges.

Oranges sold along Highway 48 are no longer as bustling as before. According to research, some orange stalls get their goods from the northern provinces, because in reality, there are not many Quy Hop oranges left, and there are no labels to prove their origin. Photo: Xuan Hoang

Restore orange area at the appropriate time

According to data from Xuan Thanh Agricultural One Member Co., Ltd., in the past, during the peak period, the unit had nearly 1,000 hectares of various types of oranges and PQ tangerines. Therefore, from the end of October, it was the orange harvest season, traders drove cars to buy dozens of tons each day to sell everywhere, so orange growers had high income. But later, oranges were infected with many diseases, the quality was poor, so the orange area decreased sharply. Like last year, the orange area decreased rapidly, currently there are only about 96 hectares of citrus trees. Of which, oranges are about 30 hectares, the rest are PQ tangerines.

Many remaining orange gardens in Quy Hop district also had fruit falling all over the garden. Photo: Quang An

A representative of Xuan Thanh Agricultural One Member Co., Ltd. said that due to the poor quality of oranges, households have harvested almost all of them since mid-October, with very low prices of 3,000 - 7,000 VND/kg; by mid-November, the key area of ​​Vinh oranges has been deserted by traders. Therefore, by the end of this year, Quy Hop oranges will not be available to supply the market during Tet as before.

Mr. Quan Vi Giang - Vice Chairman of Quy Hop District People's Committee said: Previously, Quy Hop was the capital of Vinh oranges, because of its large area and high productivity, guaranteed quality, and was favored by customers. However, due to the outbreak of disease on orange trees, the orange area has decreased sharply, from 3,000 hectares in 2020 to 1,500 hectares in 2021, up to now, only about 200 hectares. The decrease in Quy Hop's orange area is also the locality's orientation, aiming to rotate to other crops to improve the soil and eradicate pests. At a certain stage, when the orange area can be restored, orange growers are advised to choose orange varieties with clear origin and disease-free to plant.

“Currently, the orange groves that have been cleared are being converted to growing corn, sugarcane, tea, etc. instead of leaving the land fallow. Therefore, people still have income, although not as high as before, but this is the most feasible solution at this time,” said Mr. Quan Vi Giang.

Not only Quy Hop district but also many other orange areas in the province have also degenerated due to disease. The situation of oranges falling and poor quality oranges is widespread, causing growers to lose interest as before, switching to other crops.

According to Mr. Nguyen Tien Duc - Head of the Provincial Department of Cultivation and Plant Protection, the orange degradation started in Nghia Dan district, then in Quy Hop and Tan Ky districts... therefore, the orange acreage in these localities has shrunk, and the number of quality orange farms in these localities is very small.

“There is no other way, the infected orange areas need to be destroyed to limit the pathogens, and switch to other crop rotation. When the technical factors are ensured, people can replant orange trees according to the recommendations of professional agencies. However, in the province, there are still some well-cared and well-invested orange farms such as in Anh Son, Yen Thanh, Con Cuong, Thanh Chuong districts... that can supply the market in the coming time,” Mr. Nguyen Tien Duc emphasized.