Nghi Loc lemons are "sold out" during the peak of hot weather.

Mr. Nguyen Duc Quang in Hamlet 1, Nghi Dien Commune (Nghi Loc) - one of the households specializing in growing and purchasing lemons to transport to Hanoi for sale, said: This year, the harsh weather and prolonged heat have prevented his family's 200-tree lemon garden from being harvested because the fruit is rough and dry due to drought. In response to the increasing demand for cooling, in recent days, the family has hired 10 more workers to focus on purchasing lemons in the area, classifying and carrying out the steps to transport them to the northern provinces for consumption.

With a purchase price of 7,000 - 8,000 VND/kg, brought to Hanoi to import to agents at 10,000 VND/kg; minus transportation and labor costs... Mr. Quang's family earns a profit of about 1.5 million VND/day.

Agents classify lemons before packing them in boxes and transporting them to Hanoi for consumption. Photo: Thu Hien

"My family has been in the lemon business for more than 10 years. Taking advantage of having lemon consumers in Hanoi and Hai Phong, I opened an agency specializing in purchasing lemons. This year, the lemon crop is worse than last year. Currently, my family only buys 7-6 tons of lemons per day (last year, on average, we bought 10 tons per day). Having just opened an agency, my family has also planted nearly 1 hectare of lemons with 200 trees, but this year the harvest has failed due to drought, so the fruits are small and have little water," said Mr. Nguyen Duc Quang.

While being sold in Hanoi at 10,000 VND/kg, at retail kiosks in markets in Nghi Loc district, lemons cost from 14,000 - 15,000 VND/kg (twice as expensive as usual).

Ms. Nguyen Thi Tam - a lemon retailer at Nghi Trung market said that this year's lemons are not as big and beautiful as last year's, but because they were bought at a high price, she had to sell them at a high price to make a profit. The weather has been hot these past few days so she has sold out everything she had.

Although the retail price is 5,000 - 6,000 VND/kg higher, lemon growers in Nghi Loc still choose to sell wholesale to traders, because when the lemons are ready to be harvested, if they are not sold in time, the fruit will turn yellow and spoil.

In Nghi Dien commune (Nghi Loc), there are currently 14 agents specializing in purchasing lemons to bring to the northern provinces for consumption. Photo: Thu Hien

Ms. Nguyen Tam in Hamlet 11, Nghi My Commune said: "My family just sold 500 kg of lemons. They came to buy them at the garden for 7,000 VND/kg. Although it is cheaper than the market price, we still get the full amount of money. Moreover, our family is short of people, so when customers come to buy them at once, I sell them immediately, not like last year when the lemons were too ripe and no one bought them."

Currently, in Nghi Dien commune (Nghi Loc), there are 14 agents specializing in purchasing lemons to send to the northern provinces such as Hanoi; Hai Phong; Nam Dinh... for consumption. The purchasing time is spread evenly throughout the year. But the main crop season is from June to December. Every day, the lemon purchasing village in Nghi Dien consumes about more than 150 tons of lemons. Through these agents, jobs are created for hundreds of workers every year.

Lemons are purchased and transported during the day, so regardless of the hot weather, traders are still busy bringing goods to agents to select and classify lemons before packing them for sale. Lemons are sourced from traders all over the district; on average, about 300 traders bring lemons to Nghi Dien lemon purchasing points every day.

Mr. Nguyen The Mai in Nghi Cong commune (Nghi Loc), a seasonal lemon trader, said: "This year, the lemon crop failed, so we searched all day, going from one hamlet to another to buy. Today, I bought 600 kg of lemons. In order to import them to the dealer in time, I had to mobilize my wife and children to pick them on time. Each trip, I carry 450 - 500 kg, after deducting expenses, I still make a profit of 350,000 - 500,000 VND."

Currently, Nghi Loc district has more than 155 hectares of lemons. The lemon variety here has a distinctive aroma, so it is favored by customers in the northern provinces. Photo: Thu Hien

Lemon is an easy-to-grow tree, easy to flower, bear fruit and can be grown on many types of soil. The time from planting to fruiting for the first harvest is within 6 months. Planting a tree once can harvest for over 10 years; on average, each year, lemons yield 2 harvests, the main crop is from June to December DL, each lemon tree yields from 20 - 30 kg.

Currently, in Nghi Loc area, there are more than 155 hectares of lemon trees; mainly concentrated in the communes of Nghi Dien, Nghi Cong Nam, Nghi Cong Bac, Nghi My, Nghi Phuong, Nghi Kieu, Nghi Van, Nghi Dong... Thanks to the soil quality, lemon trees in Nghi Loc have a characteristic aroma, favored by consumers in the northern provinces. Due to the drought this year, the lemon crop failed, but in return, lemon trees are very easy to sell, lemon growers do not have to go far to sell but have traders come to buy in the garden. On average, each season, a lemon growing household brings in an income of 20 - 35 million VND.

Mr. Nguyen Xuan Quang - Head of Nghi Loc Department of Agriculture and Rural Development said that lemon trees are one of the drought-resistant plants and have high economic efficiency. However, the area of ​​​​planting is not concentrated and fragmented, so the Department of Agriculture will continue to encourage people to build a concentrated planting model; at the same time, organize training to transfer new scientific and technological advances to farmers to apply in order to improve crop efficiency.