Difficult traffic - Agricultural products in Ky Son are forced to lower prices

(Baonghean) -When the weather turns to winter, it is also the time when the “mobile market” for agricultural products in the remote district of Ky Son becomes bustling. Items such as corn, squash, taro, ginger, etc. are transported by trucks to all regions of the country, even exported to European countries. However, due to transportation difficulties, agricultural products are being forced down in price by traders.

This season, when we came to the highlands of Ky Son, we encountered many “mobile markets” purchasing agricultural products located along Highway 7, bustling day and night. In the communes of Huu Kiem, Chieu Luu, and Muong Xen Town, there are places to purchase corn, squash, ginger, etc., with large and small trucks continuously coming in and out to purchase goods. Here, many people in communes near Muong Xen Town such as Huu Lap, Ta Ca, Huu Kiem, etc. “carry” their agricultural products to sell directly to agents to avoid the cost of hiring transportation and intermediaries.

Ban Canh, Ta Ca commune is in the corn and squash harvest season. The Ban Canh hydroelectric plant is flooded while the bridge across the river has not been completed yet, many villagers have to use buoys to swim across the river to harvest corn. Mr. La Van Hung in Canh village said: "Each trip by buoy also carries 50 kg of corn, whatever we harvest we transport by motorbike to the purchasing points in Muong Xen town to sell immediately. If we transport it ourselves, we can sell it for 3,000 VND/kg of corn, if they come to buy it, we will be forced to pay only 2,200 - 2,500 VND/kg. Mr. Hung calculated: "My family harvested about 1 ton of corn, if we transport it ourselves, we will get 30 million VND, if we let traders buy it, we will be forced to lose 8 - 10 million VND, while the cost of transporting it ourselves is only over 1 million VND". Mr. Vu Na Cha - Chairman of Ta Ca commune People's Committee confided: The whole commune has over 250 corn, in recent years, seeing the value of corn, people have invested in care so the yield is quite high, reaching over 5 tons of corn/ha. Up to this point, the commune has harvested over 90% area, many people have dried corn and corn waiting for the price because at the beginning of the season, traders offered 3,000 VND/kg, at the end of the season, traders forced the price down to only 2,500 VND/kg, the price is too cheap so many people have not sold.

Ky Son ginger purchasing point in Luu Kien commune (Tuong Duong).

Following the muddy steep road, we continued to Muong Tip commune. This route is considered the most difficult in Ky Son district, many mountain sections have landslides so it is very difficult to travel. The section through Vang Phao and Xop Tip villages has been isolated by landslides for more than 10 days. Mr. Cut Duong in Xop Tit village shared: “This year, we have harvested about 1.2 tons of corn and nearly 80 kg of green squash but cannot transport them to the purchasing point because the road is landslide. In previous years, corn was harvested along the road and transported home by motorbike, but now we have to carry them through the forest to avoid the landslide point to bring them home. Very few trucks come to purchase, and if they do, they pay very cheaply. Due to lack of money, I have only sold 700 kg of corn for 2,200 VND/kg, I do not dare to sell the remaining quantity, I am waiting for the weather to dry up and the road is easier to travel, hoping that traders will raise the price”.

We walked along the villages of Ta Do, Na My, Pha Noi... and saw that the people's lives were very difficult and lacking in all aspects. Mr. Luong Xuan Lieu - Head of Ta Do village was sad, the village had 91 households, 81 of which were poor, the village also grew about 5 hectares of corn but the people had not sold it because the corn was too cheap. Mr. Pho Dau - Secretary of the Party Committee of Muong Tip commune lamented: The whole commune of Muong Tip planted about 120 hectares of corn, the average yield reached 4.5 tons/ha, so far the amount of corn that the people have sold has only been over 40%. In Huu Kiem and Huu Lap communes, although close to Highway 7, they are still being forced to lower prices by traders. Bui Minh Tho, a small trader from Duc Tho - Ha Tinh, confided: "Because the road is difficult to travel, we cannot use big trucks to buy goods, so we have to rely on households using small trucks to collect goods, but they sell at a very "expensive" price of 3,000 VND/kg of corn. Sometimes we are even "forced" to pay a higher price, if we don't buy, we will sell to other trucks."

In addition, green squash and taro in Ky Son are very difficult to sell. This item is absolutely not seen by traders using trucks to buy like corn, but is mainly consumed at Muong Xen Town Market. We went to Muong Xen Town Market and saw a lot of goods. Asking for prices, we learned that taro is quite expensive at 18,000 VND/kg, green squash is priced from 8,000-10,000 VND/kg. Ms. Vi Thi Huong enthusiastically invited customers to buy taro but very few people bought. Ms. Huong said: She imported more than 100 kg of taro and squash but only sold squash, and taro used to be bought by many people who went on business trips to the lowlands, but now they do not buy because they do not like to eat it. Therefore, some agents such as Bich Lien taro agent in Muong Xen Town have had to switch to buying green squash this year.

Mr. Ha Ga Nhenh - Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of Tay Son commune added: Previously, taro was a specialty product that was very popular with customers. There was a time when there was a shortage of goods and traders came to the place to buy, but now it is different. Tay Son has over 30 hectares of taro scattered in Dong Tren, Dong Duoi and Lu Thanh villages... due to difficulty in consumption, the commune does not dare to increase the area. The reason for the difficulty in consumption is that taro has the characteristic of being grown in virgin soil, the taro is grown in the forest that has just been burned, the taro is fragrant and delicious, if grown in land that has been used for 3-4 rice growing seasons, the taro does not have starch and is hard to eat. Some people have used fertilizers to affect it, but the taro is still not as delicious as before.

Unlike corn and squash, Ky Son ginger has a fairly stable output. Ms. Vi Thi May in Na Loi commune hired someone to transport ginger to Luu Kien commune (Tuong Duong) to sell, saying: If transported directly to the place, ginger can be sold for 6,000 - 6,300 VND/kg, if bought by a private trader, the price is only 5,000 - 5,500 VND/kg. At the ginger purchasing point in Luu Kien commune, Mr. Nguyen Cuong - a purchasing owner from Hanoi added: "In favorable months, we can buy 12 trucks of over 20 tons. When buying from small trucks, we require them to put them in baskets to clean the soil and rocks, then bring them back to Hanoi to process and sell to the European market." In Muong Xen town, there is also a Huong Son Agricultural Service - Small Industry Cooperative that has invested in ginger processing equipment, which is also a good sign for ginger growers in Ky Son because ginger growers no longer have to worry about output.

Mr. Nguyen Dinh Tri - Head of the Department of Agriculture of Ky Son district added: Ky Son currently has over 3,000 hectares of corn, with an average yield of 4 tons/ha, over 750 hectares of ginger and over 200 hectares of taro, 180 hectares of green squash intercropped with upland rice... For agricultural products such as corn and ginger, the State supports 80% of the seed price. Seeing the value of these agricultural products, with the guidance of technical staff, people pay attention to taking care of them according to the correct technical process, so the productivity is increasing. However, how to upgrade the transportation system to facilitate travel and the circulation of goods is the wish of the people of Ky Son.

Article and photos:Van Truong