Sweet and fragrant oranges of Bai Phu

(Baonghean) - Located at the foot of the limestone mountains, the Bai Phu orange area in Dinh Son commune (Anh Son) has long been famous for its delicious, sweet taste and is favored by consumers. There was a period when, due to weather conditions and low cultivation techniques of the people, oranges were replaced by other crops. However, in recent years, people have restored the orange area, affirming the reputation of Bai Phu oranges.

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"Re-emergence" of Bai Phu oranges

At this time, many households in Dinh Son commune are harvesting the first orange crop after more than 4 years of replanting. Although the weather this year is not favorable, the yield of Bai Phu oranges is still quite high (25 tons/ha). Just entering the harvest season, the price of oranges is from 30,000 - 40,000 VND/kg. The family of Mr. Tran Van Ha in Thang Tam village invested in planting 5 sao of oranges with over 250 trees, and this year the estimated yield is about 4 tons. With the selling price at the garden of about 35,000 VND/kg depending on the model, this year's orange crop, his family earned over 150 million VND. Mr. Ha, like many other orange growing families, is excited because in recent years, many customers have come to the garden to order Bai Phu oranges.

Oranges in Bai Phu area at the foot of limestone mountain (Dinh Son commune - Anh Son) are being expanded by local people. Photo: Nguyen Son

To have sweet orange seasons, since 2012, with the wishes of the local people and the support of the district, Dinh Son commune has implemented a project to restore the Bai Phu orange brand. To implement this project, Dinh Son commune has supported people to borrow over 1 billion VND to invest in development; up to now, the orange area of ​​the whole commune has reached nearly 60 hectares, of which about 40 hectares are harvested. Many areas have high productivity, with estimated income reaching over 500 million VND/ha. Bai Phu orange specialty has been positioning its brand in the market. This is a positive signal for the efforts to restore the Bai Phu orange brand of the people of this mountainous district.

The Dinh Son land is located under the limestone range, bordering Yen Khe commune (Con Cuong), which was previously the location of Bai Phu Farm, famous for its quality oranges. Bai Phu oranges are not only known as a specialty in the Western Nghe An region, but this agricultural product was also exported to the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe in the 80s of the last century.

According to many families, growing oranges at the foot of limestone mountains brings delicious quality because this land is less acidic due to soil and rocks flowing down from the mountains; at the same time, the mountain range also helps to block the dew and wind for the oranges. Currently, Dinh Son commune has 106 households growing oranges. With the help of the district, the commune has built a plan to develop over 200 hectares of oranges by 2020.

Towards building sustainable brands

Bai Phu oranges really leave an impression on everyone who enjoys them with their fragrant, sweet taste, soft orange segments and little mu (white skin close to the orange segments). Therefore, most of the orange acreage here is sought after by gourmet customers when it comes to harvest season. Many people go to the orange gardens to order, regular customers call the garden owners to send the goods by bus. The day we went to Dinh Son orange area, Ms. Dang Thi Nham in Thang Tam village was cutting oranges to send to customers in Da Nang and Hanoi. Ms. Nham said that when it is orange season, there are many customers calling, some people during the orange season order up to half a ton of fruit. Customers in Vinh call in the morning, and they will have oranges right away in the afternoon.

Like Ms. Nham, all orange growers in Dinh Son are growing, caring for and selling their own oranges. Many households have even opened kiosks to sell oranges to customers passing through National Highway 7. Because oranges are easy to sell, the Bai Phu orange growing area has not yet built its own brand in the Geographical Indication of Vinh oranges in general. For this reason, many traders have taken advantage of this by mixing in other types of oranges, including Chinese oranges, and then using the "name" of Bai Phu oranges to sell to consumers.

Realizing that risk, in the Project for developing orange trees until 2020, Dinh Son commune has considered registering the Bai Phu orange brand, thereby protecting the production area and increasing the income value for the people. According to Mr. Dinh Viet Hanh - Chairman of the Farmers' Association of Dinh Son commune, during the implementation process, the commune has established a project to borrow 2.2 billion VND to support people to grow oranges, along with the people's own capital of about 5.2 billion VND more to plant 60 more hectares of oranges, bringing the total area of ​​oranges in the area by 2020 to over 120 hectares. However, the problem is that the commune as well as orange growers really want all levels to support the development of the Bai Phu orange brand for sustainable development.

Bai Phu oranges are harvested and sold to customers. Photo: N. Son

Discussing the strategy for developing orange trees in the area, Mr. Nguyen Huu Sang - Chairman of Anh Son District People's Committee said: Through surveying soil quality and climate, the district can develop 300 hectares, mainly concentrated in Dinh Son commune and some neighboring areas to create the Bai Phu orange brand. With the help of all levels and sectors, most of the orange growers in the area have gradually mastered the techniques of caring for orange trees. In the condition that the area does not increase, the district will support people to build modern orange growing models, apply automatic irrigation systems, Israeli drip and use high-quality orange varieties, in which by 2020, it is expected that about 100 hectares will be developed in a modern direction. In addition to exploiting support mechanisms from superiors (Decision No. 87/2014/QD-UBND dated November 17, 2014), the district will study the integration of resources and have appropriate support mechanisms for orange growing areas in the coming time.

Overall, the Bai Phu orange growing area in Anh Son is not as large as some other localities. However, with the advantages of land and micro-climate of the orange growing area, it is creating products that are making a mark on consumers. The problem is that with the support of all levels and sectors, orange growers themselves need to consider the strong connection in the process of planting, caring for and consuming the product, so that the "famous" Bai Phu orange can last forever, bringing sustainable economic value./.

PV Group