With passion fruit priced at 4,000 VND/kg, are factories making things difficult for farmers?

(Baonghean.vn) - The current selling price of 1 kg of grade 2 passion fruit to factories is only 4,000 VND, less than half of last year's price, causing concern among passion fruit growers in Tri Le commune, Que Phong district, Nghe An province.

Mr. Vii Van Cuong, from Yen Son village, Tri Le commune, is not as happy about his passion fruit harvest as last year because the price has dropped too low. Photo: Xuan Hoang

At this time, the ethnic minority people in Tri Le commune, Que Phong district, are harvesting the first passion fruit of the year. However, due to the stricter purchase prices compared to last year, the farmers are earning less income.

Mr. Vi Van Son, from Yen Son village, Tri Le commune, has 1.3 hectares of passion fruit trees. Mr. Son said: "Last year, the factory bought the fruit indiscriminately from farmers at 9,000 VND/kg, so farmers earned a high income from passion fruit. However, at the beginning of this season, the factory is buying at two prices: Grade 1 at 12,000 VND/kg, and Grade 2 at 4,000 VND/kg. Meanwhile, the percentage of Grade 1 passion fruit is very low. Mr. Son's family harvested 300 kg of fruit, but only 35 kg were Grade 1, the rest were Grade 2, resulting in much lower income compared to last year."

Although the passion fruit itself is of normal quality, the farmers have to sell it at the price of a second-grade product because of a fungal infection on the peel. Photo: Xuan Hoang

If the factory's purchase price remained the same, Mr. Son's family would have earned about 90 million VND from this lemon crop; however, this year he only earned about 40 million VND. According to Mr. Son, planting 1.3 hectares of passion fruit requires an initial investment of nearly 100 million VND, and after a maximum of 3 harvests, it must be replanted. Therefore, lemon growers in Tri Le are very worried about the low income.

According to Ms. Luong Thi Phuong from Yen Son village: "The factory not only selects fruits that meet the required weight but also ensures they are free from fungal infections, whereas passion fruit here often has fungal infections on the skin."

After harvesting, Ms. Luong Thi Phuong selects the best-looking fruits to sell to independent traders for 13,000 VND/kg, while the rest is sold to the factory for 4,000 VND/kg. Photo: Quang An

Faced with the situation of a sharp drop in passion fruit purchase prices by factories, Mr. Vi Van Cuong - Chairman of the People's Committee of Tri Le commune - said: Tri Le commune has submitted a proposal to the People's Committee of Que Phong district requesting an adjustment of passion fruit purchase prices in Tri Le commune. Accordingly, this passion fruit season in Tri Le commune has 155 hectares of passion fruit ready for harvest, with an estimated yield of 20 tons/ha, and an estimated production of 3,100 tons of fruit.

However, according to the factory's classification, Grade 1 fruits weigh between 83 and 111 grams each, with all leaves removed, the stem intact, free from pests and diseases, free from mud and soil, and without any blemishes or insect damage. With this selection method, the percentage of Grade 1 fruits accounts for only about 10% of the total production.

On June 14th, the People's Committee of Que Phong District issued document No. 710/UBND-NN requesting an adjustment to the price of passion fruit in the area. Accordingly, the People's Committee of Que Phong District requested the Provincial People's Committee and the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to advise Nafoods Passion Fruit Joint Stock Company to increase the purchase price of passion fruit in the district to 9,000 - 10,000 VND/kg from now until the end of 2020, regardless of fruit type.

However, the factory has not adjusted prices at this time.

Currently, Tri Le commune has 212 hectares of passion fruit, of which 155 hectares are already producing fruit. Photo: Quang An

Speaking with us, Mr. Pham Duy Thai, Deputy General Director of Nafoods Passion Fruit Joint Stock Company, said: The low price of passion fruit is due to market fluctuations, therefore, for the time being, the factory will only purchase at that price. When the market price increases, the factory will adjust the purchase price for farmers.

Mr. Thai also acknowledged that in recent days, many farmers have selectively harvested passion fruit to sell to outside traders at higher prices. However, the factory advises farmers not to rely solely on traders but to accept and adapt to the market's operation in order to develop sustainable passion fruit cultivation in the long term.

X.Hoang - Quang An