Changes at the foot of Mo Da mountain

(Baonghean) - Implementing the Resolution of the Commune Party Committee, the Dien Trung Commune Party Committee (Dien Chau) has focused on leading the locality to promote the conversion of agricultural production towards commodities based on available potential. Thanks to that, a picture with warm and prosperous colors is being painted on this peaceful land under Mo Da peak.

Located not far from National Highway 1, but in contrast to the bustling, noisy atmosphere on the North-South highway, the farm of Mr. Ho Van Sau's family (Dien Trung commune, Dien Chau) is nestled under the casuarina trees rustling with the sea breeze. Looking at the spacious premises today, few people would have guessed that, just five years ago, this land was barren. As a child born and raised in this land, with the brave spirit of a party member, in 2010, Mr. Sau and two relatives invested in building ponds, determined to get rich from raising white-leg shrimp. On an area of ​​3 hectares of barren land, neat, square shrimp ponds were invested in methodically, following the technical process. In 2011, his family officially started raising the first shrimp crop. While talking and guiding us to visit the farming ponds, the 20-year party member, with dark skin and a strong, salty taste of the ocean, still cannot forget the mood of the first days of building the integrated livestock farm.

Mr. Sau shared: “The characteristics of shrimp are very “fickle” with the environment and climate, so before deciding to pursue this career, we were very hesitant. Because we were all “newbies”, we had not fully grasped the farming techniques, and lacked experience in caring for each growth stage of the shrimp.” After much thought and consideration, especially witnessing the scene of areas near the sea with a lot of potential for aquaculture being abandoned or grown for crops with low economic value, he discussed with his family members and decided to borrow 1.2 billion VND to invest in shrimp farming.

Learning from many models, the economic efficiency is unstable, "winners losers" have happened in shrimp farming areas in the country in general and Nghe An in particular, so he invested a lot in the technical aspect. Every day, after completing the work of a commune team leader, he went home, went straight to the farm and devoted all his efforts to taking care of the shrimp ponds. "The land does not disappoint people", in the past 2 years, 2 crops per year, his family harvested an average of 12-13 tons of commercial shrimp per crop. Calculating the market price of about 120,000 VND/kg, excluding investment costs, each crop, 3 hectares of shrimp farming gave a net profit of 500 million VND. Thanks to that, he not only paid off the initial loan but also had savings and reinvested in production. “In the past, the whole family only did decorative work. Growing corn, peanuts, and sesame did not have high economic value, so life was not very prosperous. The family economy has developed a lot since raising shrimp. Currently, I am experimenting with raising chickens, geese, and goats on the farm. The initial results are very good,” said party member Ho Van Sau happily while cleaning the third-year shrimp ponds that are about to be harvested.

Party member Ho Van Sau (Dien Trung - Dien Chau) cleans shrimp pond.

Also in Dien Trung, we heard many success stories about developing industrial-scale broiler farming. A typical example is the family of party member Ho Sy Cuong (52 years old). In 2010, he decided to rent more than 600m2 of land in hamlet 14 to open a broiler farm with a scale of 7,000 chickens per batch in the form of outsourcing for CP Vietnam Company. "We only invest in the farm's infrastructure. CP Company is responsible for investing in chicken breeds from one day old, feed, veterinary medicine and consuming products for us farmers," he said. Thanks to close links with businesses, the output of products is guaranteed to be stable. From the broiler farm, his family sells 3 batches each year, with a total profit of 150 million VND. After saying that, he showed us the broiler farm with a scale of more than 1,000 chickens that had just been put into use in the garden next door. “Since raising chickens, my wife no longer has to run around to sell at the market. A stable income not only makes life more comfortable but also creates conditions for reinvestment and expansion of production scale,” the veteran party member happily shared about the initial results.

Now in Dien Trung, the above livestock models are no longer strange to farmers since the Commune People's Committee concretized the resolution on promoting the conversion of low-income production land to aquaculture and developing livestock and poultry farming in the direction of commodities of the Commune Party Committee. This is a correct and timely policy when the reality in Dien Trung, people's lives mainly depend on 462 hectares of color land and 70.5 hectares of one-rice-one-color land; in addition, the fishing profession is still small and fragmented, most of the fishing is done near the shore by rafts, so the economic efficiency is low, the poverty rate is higher than the general level of Dien Chau district.

Currently, the whole commune has 26 households converting low-yield production land to aquaculture with a total area of ​​24 hectares. In addition, there are 168 farms and ranches focusing on raising meat chickens and egg-laying chickens according to the industrial model with a total herd of up to nearly 200,000 chickens per year, each farm and ranch raises an average of 500 - 15,000 breeds/batch. Dien Trung farmers are even more excited because recently, 100 farms (80 chicken farms, 20 pig farms) have successfully applied the Good Agricultural Practices in Vietnam (VietGAP) process to production. These "golden" numbers show the correct policy of the Dien Trung Commune Party Committee, and at the same time show the improvement in the picture of life of the coastal people.

Comrade Tran Van Dung - Chairman of the Commune Farmers' Association said: "The successful application of VietGAP is an important development step in the commune's livestock industry. Because, this is a certification of Dien Trung agricultural products that ensure quality, food safety, clear product origin, environmental protection and health, social security for workers. The Farmers' Association will continue to help farmers improve the production efficiency of each model through training and technology transfer".

Comrade Ngo Duc Lan - Secretary of the Commune Party Committee said: "In order to effectively implement the resolution today, first of all, the role of party members in political organizations and unions is extremely important. Through the support of mass organizations, especially the Commune Farmers' Association, comrades have pioneered and boldly built models of aquaculture, broiler chickens, and egg-laying chickens with high efficiency. Thereby, creating a wide spread influence among the masses, contributing to accelerating the cause of hunger eradication and poverty reduction in the locality."

Now returning to the coastal land, those who have been away from home for many years will surely be surprised by the changes in their homeland. Standing on the top of Mo Da looking down, in addition to the magnificent and wonderful natural scenery of the harmony of heaven and earth, the fertile land at the foot of the mountain also brings a feeling of true prosperity and peace. Determined to escape the life of drifting on the sea, the people of Dien Trung are taking steady steps on the land of their birth.

Article and photos:Thanh Duy