Pineapples rotten, Nghe An farmers lose tens of billions of dong

(Baonghean.vn) - These days, pineapple growers in Tan Thang commune (Quynh Luu) are restless because many pineapple areas nearing harvest time are affected by pests and rotten buds, causing tens of billions of dong in damage.

Never before has Mr. Nguyen Cong Nhuan's family in hamlet 2/9 fallen into such a dire situation as this year because 4 hectares of pineapples that were growing well suddenly had rotten buds and were damaged. To invest in planting 4 hectares of pineapples, from August to October, Mr. Nhuan spent about 200 million VND to prepare the land, buy seeds and fertilizers. After nearly 2 months of planting and caring, the pineapple area grew well, promising to harvest fruit in August 2018. However, from around mid-November 2017, some pineapple areas suddenly had wilted tops, died gradually and then spread to the family's 4 hectares of pineapples. After checking and determining, the cause of the wilted pineapples was rotten buds.

"When we discovered that the pineapples had rotten buds, our family bought medicine to spray to prevent the disease from spreading widely, but it was ineffective. The entire 4 hectares of pineapples had rotten buds, causing hundreds of millions of dong in damage," Mr. Nhuan shared.

Since mid-November 2017, 4 hectares of pineapples belonging to Mr. Nguyen Cong Nhuan's family in Hamlet 2/9, Tan Thang Commune (Quynh Luu) suddenly had yellow leaves and rotten buds. Photo: Thuy Nga

Sharing the same situation, Mr. Luong Duc Thuoc's family in Bac Thang hamlet was even more heartbroken when nearly 1 hectare of pineapples that were about to be harvested suddenly had rotten buds, stunted fruits and gradually withered. All the effort and capital invested in nearly 1 hectare of pineapple suddenly went to waste, causing a loss of more than 150 million VND.

“If the pineapples had not rotted, by the end of December, the family would have harvested the fruit, with an expected yield of 32 tons/ha, and after deducting expenses, the profit would have been nearly 100 million VND; unexpectedly, the pineapples were lost on the day of harvest, and now we don’t know where to get the money to reproduce,” Mr. Thuoc said sadly.

Due to the disease of rot, many pineapples of Tan Thang people are wilting, the plants are dying, and have a foul smell. Photo: Viet Hung

In 2017, Tan Thang commune planted nearly 600 pineapples, including newly planted, under care and ready for harvest. For each hectare of pineapple, farmers invest 60 - 80 million VND in seedlings, fertilizer, planting and care. If everything goes well, farmers earn an average of 150 million VND per hectare of pineapple, after deducting all expenses, the profit is nearly 80 - 100 million VND.

According to local people, the reason for the rotten pineapples is that this year there has been a lot of rain, little light for the pineapple plants to photosynthesize, causing the pineapple plants to become sick. The phenomenon of rotten pineapples started appearing in September and only appeared in a few households, but then many other households' pineapples also suffered from the above phenomenon and it has continued until now.

Mr. Luong Duc Thuoc in Bac Thang hamlet was devastated when nearly 1 hectare of pineapples that were about to be harvested suddenly rotted, causing a loss of more than 150 million VND. Photo: Viet Hung

Immediately after discovering that the pineapples were infected, people bought medicine to spray but it was ineffective and the pineapple area spread further. According to statistics from the Commune People's Committee, out of the total of nearly 600 hectares of pineapples being grown, about 150 hectares of pineapples were infected with rot disease, of which 85 hectares of pineapples had fruit and were ready to be harvested; 65 hectares of newly planted pineapples were growing. With the area of ​​pineapples infected with rot disease, people in Tan Thang Commune suffered a loss of about 16 billion VND.

About 85 hectares of pineapples that were about to be harvested are now withered, stunted and dying. Photo: Viet Hung

Mr. Lang Dinh Liem - Vice Chairman of Tan Thang Commune People's Committee, Quynh Luu District, the locality identified pineapple as the main crop in the locality, accounting for about 65 - 68% of agricultural crops. Pineapple is one of the main crops, contributing to increasing the total production value in the locality, helping many households increase their income and improve their lives. The disease of pineapple trees has caused great damage to farmers. Therefore, households in Tan Thang commune hope that the authorities at all levels will have policies to support, especially capital sources for people to continue to restore production./.

Viet Hung - Thuy Nga