Cam Quy Hop is past its golden age.

The orange grove is covered with sugarcane and corn.

Visit the key orange-growing region of Vinh.Quy Hop districtOn a day in mid-November, the bustling scene of traders buying and selling oranges was nowhere to be seen. The vast orange orchards, spanning tens of hectares and laden with fruit a few years ago, have now been replaced by sugarcane fields and rows of biomass corn ready for harvest. Along the main roads of the orange-growing region, one occasionally encounters a few orange groves, but no one pays any attention to them because the quality of the oranges is so poor, tasting sour.

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

Visiting the orange orchard of Mr. Hau and Ms. Huyen's family in Tho Thanh hamlet, Minh Hop commune, we found only about 150 Xa Doai orange trees with golden flesh. Mr. Hau said that all the trees had been infected with pests and diseases, so they stopped investing in care and let them grow on their own. As a result, the oranges, now ready for harvest, are only slightly larger than lemons, lacking the characteristic sweetness and aroma of before. Traders only buy them for 3,000-4,000 VND/kg, and in some cases, they are unsaleable and left to rot in the orchard.

“Many families in the neighborhood have cut down their orange trees and switched to planting short-term crops, which provide a steady income. Therefore, my family will also dig up all these orange trees to switch to planting corn or sugarcane to improve the soil. We will consider replanting oranges after 4-5 years,” Mr. Hau shared.

The orange trees were severely infested with pests and diseases, resulting in a sharp drop in yield. Photo: Quang An

Mr. Nguyen Cong Bien, owner of a more than 1-hectare orange orchard belonging to Xuan Thanh Agricultural Company Limited, said that his family's orchard started harvesting in 2019, peaking in the 2020 season with an income of hundreds of millions of VND per hectare. However, in 2021, the orchard seriously deteriorated. The oranges began to fall off in large numbers when they reached the size of lemons, and by harvest time, only about 20% of the fruit remained, and the quality was poor, leading to losses. Therefore, at the end of 2021, the family decided to clear the entire orange orchard to plant biomass corn, leaving only a few dozen PQ mandarin trees.

"Growing corn three times a year yields an income of over 100 million VND. But more importantly, it improves the soil, allows it to rest, eliminates pests and diseases, and later we can switch to growing oranges, restoring the Vinh orange brand; however, that will take at least another 4-5 years," Mr. Bien said.

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

Our observations also show that along National Highway 48, the section passing through Minh Hop commune has a few stalls selling Quy Hop oranges, but the quantity is small and the oranges are not very appealing. The best-looking ones cost 30,000 VND/kg, while the cheapest are 10,000 VND/kg, and the number of buyers can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

Traders say that, like in previous years, in November they used to buy tons of oranges from local farmers every day to ship to customers near and far. However, now they can only buy a few dozen kilograms each day, which they sell retail along National Highway 48, but it's difficult to sell because the oranges are not as beautiful or delicious as before. Because of the low sales volume, orange orchard owners no longer have packaging with information about their orchards printed on it. This is also the reason why many customers are suspicious about the origin of the oranges.

The orange stalls along National Highway 48 are no longer as bustling as before. According to our investigation, some orange vendors source their goods from northern provinces, as oranges from Quy Hop are now scarce and lack labels to prove their origin. Photo: Xuan Hoang

Restore the orange peel area at the appropriate time.

Data from Xuan Thanh Agricultural Company Limited shows that, in the past, during peak periods, the company had nearly 1,000 hectares of various types of oranges and tangerines. Therefore, from the end of October, which was the orange harvest season, traders would drive trucks to buy tens of tons every day for distribution everywhere, thus providing high income for orange growers. However, as time went on, the oranges became more susceptible to disease, resulting in poor quality, and the area under cultivation decreased sharply. Last year, the area under cultivation decreased rapidly, and currently only about 96 hectares of citrus trees remain. Of that, about 30 hectares are oranges, and the rest are tangerines.

Many orange orchards in Quy Hop district still have some fruit left, but it has all fallen off the trees. Photo: Quang An

A representative from Xuan Thanh Agricultural Company Limited stated that due to poor quality oranges, households had harvested almost all of their oranges by mid-October, at very low prices ranging from 3,000 to 7,000 VND/kg; by mid-November, traders were absent from this key orange-growing area in Vinh. Therefore, at the end of this year, there will be no oranges from Quy Hop available to supply the market for Tet (Lunar New Year) as in previous years.

Mr. Quan Vi Giang, Vice Chairman of the Quy Hop District People's Committee, said: "Previously, Quy Hop was the capital of Vinh oranges, due to its large area, high yield, and guaranteed quality, which were favored by customers. However, due to disease outbreaks on orange trees, the area of ​​orange cultivation has decreased sharply, from 3,000 hectares in 2020 to 1,500 hectares in 2021, and currently, only about 200 hectares remain. The reduction in orange cultivation area in Quy Hop is also part of the local government's plan to switch to other crops to improve the soil and eradicate pests and diseases. At a certain point, when the orange growing area can be restored, we advise orange growers to choose disease-free and traceable orange varieties for planting."

"Currently, in the areas where orange trees have been cut down, people are switching to planting corn, sugarcane, tea, etc., instead of leaving the land fallow. Therefore, people still have an income, although not as high as before, but this is the most feasible solution at this time," said Mr. Quan Vi Giang.

Not only in Quy Hop district but also in many other orange-growing areas in the province, the oranges are deteriorating due to disease. The widespread dropping of oranges and the prevalence of poor-quality oranges have made growers less enthusiastic than before, causing them to switch to other crops.

According to Mr. Nguyen Tien Duc, Head of the Provincial Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection, the degradation of oranges started in Nghia Dan district, then spread to Quy Hop and Tan Ky districts, among others. As a result, the area of ​​orange orchards in these localities has shrunk, and the number of quality orange farms in these areas is very small.

“There is no other way; in areas where orange trees are infected, farmers need to destroy them to limit the spread of the disease and switch to planting other crops in rotation. When the technical conditions are met, farmers can replant orange trees according to the recommendations of specialized agencies. However, in the province, there are still some well-maintained and systematically invested orange orchards in districts such as Anh Son, Yen Thanh, Con Cuong, Thanh Chuong… that can supply the market in the future,” Mr. Nguyen Tien Duc emphasized.