Passion fruit capital Nghe An 'died young'

Break passion fruit

Back to the capitalpassion fruitIn Tri Le commune, what makes us worried is that the passion fruit growing areas that used to be lush and full of fruit are now abandoned. People said that because the trees were infected with disease and fungus, every house had to destroy them.

The passion fruit gardens that once covered the land are now just empty lots in Tri Le commune, Que Phong district. Photo: Quang An

Visiting the abandoned land in Lam Hop village, garden owner Lu Thi Tuyet said that her family used to grow more than 400 passion fruit trees. During the peak years from 2016 to 2018, passion fruit prices increased, earning hundreds of millions of dong each year. Thanks to that, she and her husband saved up to build a new, more spacious house.

However, because the passion fruit was infected with disease and fungus, the plants grew poorly, the fruit was small, and the yield and quality decreased, so traders did not buy them, so her family was forced to destroy the entire garden and leave the land fallow for many years.

From 400 passion fruit trees, Ms. Lu Thi Tuyet's garden is now just an empty lot. Photo: Xuan Hoang

Similarly, Mr. Ngan Van Vu said that his family's 1-hectare garden plot used to have nearly 1,000 passion fruit trees. In the first years, the trees grew well, yielded high yields, and brought in a good income. However, due to the trees being infected with disease, the family had to destroy a part of them, leaving only 400 trees to continue taking care of, and the rest were switched to growing fruit trees: jackfruit, guava, mango, etc. In the area where 400 passion fruit trees were planted, each tree was carefully staked and trellised, but most of them were stunted and had yellow leaves.

Mr. Vu said that due to the high price of fertilizer, his family did not have the conditions to invest in enough fertilizer, so the passion fruit tree did not grow as expected. At this time, the passion fruit has entered the first harvest season, but because the fruit is small,traderonly buys selected fruits at a price of 20,000 VND/kg. "For people to continue growing passion fruit, the government and businesses need to accompany them," said Mr. Ngan Van Vu.

The situation of the above families is also the common situation of people in the passion fruit capital Tri Le. Passion fruit gardens have been destroyed and become grazing grounds for buffalo and cows. Irrigation works, temporary houses... used to care for passion fruit are now abandoned.

Passion fruit trees are mostly affected by pests, stunted growth, yellow leaves... and people have to destroy them because productivity has decreased sharply. Photo: Quang An

Mr. Vi Van Cuong - Chairman of Tri Le Commune People's Committee said: There was a peak time in 2016 - 2017 when the commune's passion fruit area reached more than 212 hectares, bringing in a significant source of income. However, according to statistics, currently in the commune there are only about 5 hectares of passion fruit trees.

Mr. Cuong said that the reason why people destroyed the passion fruit trees was because the price of lemons from the place where Nafoods Company previously bought them was stable at 10,000 - 12,000 VND/kg, but later decreased lower; not to mention that in the past few years, many pests and diseases have appeared on the passion fruit trees, leading to the passion fruit trees not being economically effective.

Passion fruit used to be the most economically efficient crop in the Tri Le border area, helping people escape poverty. Photo: Quang An

What is the solution for passion fruit tree?

Passion fruit trees began to take root in the highlands in 2010. To help farmers in the passion fruit growing areas in Que Phong and Tuong Duong districts, the People's Council of Nghe An province issued Resolution No. 14/2017 on supporting agricultural and rural development to help farmers with seedlings, fertilizers, irrigation water, etc.

According to the plan, passion fruit raw material area atQue Phong districtis 1,500 hectares, Tuong Duong district is 300 hectares. The Standing Committee of Que Phong District Party Committee also issued Resolution No. 08-NQ/HU on passion fruit development in the period 2013 - 2020 and the People's Committee of Que Phong district has organized the integration of other programs and projects to support households growing passion fruit in the district.

After the resolution of the Standing Committee of the District Party Committee was issued, the areanew passion fruit plantingfrom 2013 to 2020 increased rapidly. At that time, it could be affirmed that the tree brought the highest income to the people here. The investment cost for 1 hectare including seeds, trellis poles, fertilizers... is about 120 million VND; the growth cycle is about 4-5 years. Except for the first year, the yield in the following years can reach 40-50 tons/ha, bringing in an income of 200 - 400 million VND/ha/year. Passion fruit has become one of the typical products of Que Phong.

People in Tri Le commune, Que Phong district prepare land to plant a new type of tree after destroying passion fruit. Photo: Xuan Hoang

Mr. Bui Van Hien - Vice Chairman of Que Phong District People's Committee said: In 2016, Que Phong planned a passion fruit growing area of ​​900 hectares in Tri Le, Nam Giai, and Nam Nhoong communes. The peak passion fruit growing area in the district was in 2017 - 2018, reaching 283 hectares.

After 2018, Que Phong planned to increase the passion fruit growing area to 1,500 hectares. However, by 2020, a widespread fungal disease occurred, leading to poor plant growth and low productivity... people destroyed the area, and now there are only about 20 hectares scattered in the villages of the Mong people.

The reason for the sharp decrease in passion fruit growing area, Mr. Bui Van Hien said, is that passion fruit is a "difficult" plant, growing on the same type of soil for many years will be infected with fungus, so the professional agency recommends that it be grown in rotation; since the Covid-19 epidemic occurred, the export market has encountered difficulties, so the price of passion fruit has dropped sharply. Meanwhile, there is no policy to support the development of passion fruit, and the business side, Nafoods Passion Fruit Joint Stock Company, no longer grows commercial passion fruit, but only produces seedlings, so people gradually give up.

About development solutionspassion fruit tree in Que Phong, Mr. Bui Van Hien said: Although the area of ​​passion fruit has decreased sharply, the Resolution of the District Party Committee for the term 2020 - 2025 still includes maintaining the production of passion fruit trees from 250 - 300 hectares. Currently, the Institute of Agricultural Sciences (Vietnam Academy of Agriculture) is surveying a project to grow passion fruit trees using new technology, expected to be deployed on an area of ​​10 hectares, with an estimated cost of 3 billion VND.

After the project is implemented, the district will evaluate to expand the area. Accordingly, the district will direct localities to select households with sufficient conditions in terms of labor, land, economy and enthusiasm... to develop based on the high-tech application model. In addition, the district will utilize many capital sources from the National Target Program on New Rural Development and other sources to stimulate the development of passion fruit areas.

Passion fruit needs a sustainable direction to exploit the potential of land, climate and people, while ensuring income for people in border areas. Photo: Quang An

“The most important solution that Que Phong is interested in is to have businesses accompany people to produce according to the chain. Therefore, the district has proposed that the business, Nafoods Joint Stock Company, increase its search for export markets abroad. Once there is a market, the business needs to implement a passion fruit growing model to create a spreading influence for people to follow,” said Mr. Bui Van Hien.

Xuan Hoang - Quang An