The area of ​​FSC-certified forest in Yen Thanh district reaches more than 3,200 hectares.

Going along National Highway 48 E to Quang Thanh Commune, Yen Thanh District, you will see two sides of the mountain slopes covered with the immense green of hybrid acacia forests. It is known that in the past, this land was a wild hill range with reeds. People mainly grew low-value crops such as corn, cassava, etc., so life was difficult. However, in recent years, thanks to the development of raw material forest plantation, people here have boldly changed the crop structure, gradually bringing high economic efficiency.

Mr. Nguyen Dien in Quang Thanh commune - a household owner of a large acacia plantation said: "With the local government's propaganda about the benefits of developing raw acacia trees, over the past 10 years, my family has focused on improving the land area, investing in buying seedlings to plant more than 40 hectares of raw acacia. Previously, my family mainly planted "freely", now we pay attention to the planting and care stages from treating the ground cover, digging holes, fertilizing, planting at the right density, to periodically weeding, fertilizing the trees, and selecting quality seedlings, so the acacia has a high yield, reaching over 100 tons/ha.

Up to now, every year Mr. Nguyen Dien harvests 7-8 hectares of acacia, selling at a price of over 1.3 million/ton for a revenue of about 800-900 million VND/ha/year. In addition, there are many other households achieving large revenues of 200-300 million VND/year thanks to acacia planting.

Mr. Phan Duc Tien - Chairman of Quang Thanh Commune People's Committee said: Realizing the potential for economic development of the forest, the commune has strongly developed the planting of raw material forests. Up to now, Quang Thanh has over 800 hectares of raw material acacia forest (with about over 500 households participating in planting forests), annually exploiting over 200 hectares, the commune propagates and mobilizes people to focus on intensive forest planting to increase productivity.

Thanks to the acacia plantation, the commune's annual revenue is over 200 billion VND. Not to mention the acacia exploitation, loading, afforestation, and acacia transport driving jobs for over 600 local workers...

According to Mr. Phan Duc Tien, planting raw material forests is still facing some difficulties, such as some people still using floating varieties with poor quality, leading to the situation where some newly planted acacia areas are underdeveloped or have to be replanted after losing leaves.

In addition, Tien Thanh commune is the "acacia granary" of Yen Thanh district, currently has over 1,300 hectares of acacia, annually exploiting 250-350 hectares of acacia. At this time, the price of acacia has increased to over 1.3 million VND/ton, making farmers very excited. Mr. Phan Van Mai, Tien Thanh commune, a household growing acacia on over 10 hectares of acacia, said: Due to planting according to the process and intensive techniques, the average yield is high at 80-100 tons of acacia/ha, planting according to the intercropping cycle, exploiting 2-3 hectares all year round, achieving a revenue of about 250-300 million VND/year. The advantage is that traders from everywhere come to buy right at the foot of the hill.

Mr. Phan Van Vu - Chairman of Tien Thanh Commune People's Committee said: In order to plant forests effectively, in recent years, the commune has coordinated with forest rangers and the District Agricultural Service Center to organize training courses on forest planting, care techniques, and pest control measures for acacia trees. It is recommended that people plant at an appropriate density of 1,600 to 2,000 trees/ha; to base fertilizer, annual top dressing including manure and NPK fertilizer; soil preparation must pay attention to improving the terrain to be favorable for water retention and infiltration.

Thanks to training and access to science and technology, people gradually change old farming practices, choose disease-free seedlings, plant and take better care of acacia trees, and ensure good growth of afforestation areas in the commune. Every year, the revenue from acacia planting also brings Tien Thanh commune 250-300 billion VND.

Mr. Nguyen Viet Khanh - Head of Yen Thanh District Forest Protection Department added: With the local advantage of having a lot of mountainous areas, in recent years Yen Thanh district has actively encouraged people to promote planting raw material forests, gradually increasing income. People are also more interested in developing raw material acacia trees, always planting new trees, replanting forests promptly right after exploitation.

Thereby, it is possible to maintain forest cover, protect the environment, increase production cycles, and create regular jobs. Up to now, Yen Thanh district has over 18,000 hectares of raw acacia forest, with over 2,000 hectares newly planted every year. To ensure quality forest planting, the district recommends that people should buy tree seedlings from reputable licensed establishments, such as the Yen Thanh Protective Forest Management Board and forestry companies in the province.

In the long term, Yen Thanh district is continuing to promote the granting of FSC certification to gradually improve economic efficiency for forest growers, create a concentrated source of raw materials for factories producing and processing wood products for export, and bring economic efficiency, create jobs, stable income for rural workers, and protect the ecological environment.