'The fragrant sadness' in Na Loi
(Baonghean.vn) - In mid-November, people in Na Loi commune (Ky Son) began the harvest season of fragrant rice - a specialty rice variety that has been preserved and passed down for generations. However, besides the joy of the season, people as well as local government officials have concerns and worries as fewer and fewer households are persistent in preserving this precious rice variety.
More and more households are abandoning growing fragrant rice.
Mid-November 2022 is the time when farmers in Na Loi commune (Ky Son) startrice harvestFragrant rice - a native rice variety that has been passed down and cultivated by the people for many generations. Mr. Vi Van Tien in Na Khuong village said that the fragrant rice variety was passed down by him and then his father through the method of manually selecting large, firm, and thick-grained rice flowers to use as seeds for the next crop. The preservation of the seeds by hand, my fellow villagers in Na Khuong and I have been doing for decades now.
When asked if there are many households in Na Khuong growing this fragrant rice variety, Mr. Vi Van Tien said, "It's much less than before, every year there are a few households that stop growing fragrant rice and switch to growing other varieties." When asked why, Mr. Tien shook his head and said, "Maybe it's because growing fragrant rice is much more labor-intensive than other rice varieties, and it takes longer to harvest."
 |
People of Na Loi commune take care of fragrant rice fields. Photo: Hoai Thu |
Explaining this further, Na Khuong Village Chief Luong Van Phong said that fragrant rice has a longer growing period than regular rice varieties by about a month. Moreover, fragrant rice plants are very tall, more difficult to fertilize, and if exposed to unfavorable weather such as rain and wind, they can easily fall over, leading to crop failure, especially in October and November.
This year, the yield of fragrant rice is lower than previous years, many fields have many empty grains due to the rain and floods right at the time of rice heading. Previously, Na Khuong village had more than 70 households, and every household grew fragrant rice. But this year, there are only more than a dozen households growing it, and only a few households grow a lot such as Mr. Vi Van Tien, Vi Van Hai, Moong Van Thiet... The whole Na Khuong village has 48 hectares of rice, of which fragrant rice is about 3 hectares.
It is known that nowadays there are many hybrid rice varieties with higher yield and faster replanting time. In Na Loi commune, people now grow a lot of hybrid rice, fragrant sticky rice and Hanoi sticky rice, which are available at the plant breeding center. As for fragrant rice, there is no variety for sale, so people save the seeds from this crop for the next crop.
Previously, fragrant rice was sourced from Tuong Duong district, but Tuong Duong people have not grown this rice variety for a long time. The household that grows the most rice in Na Khuong village, Mr. Vi Van Tien, also said that this year he planted less fragrant rice than last year because the rice is too tall, it often falls over and loses productivity.
The original fragrant rice variety was a little different from today. At that time, each grain of fragrant rice had a long brown beard. Over the decades, it has been partly hybridized. Today's fragrant rice is still preserved, but the grains no longer have beards. The flavor is basically still retained, but the stickiness has decreased a little.
Ms. Pit Thi Ha - Chairman of the People's Committee of Na Loi commune worriedly said that as a particularly difficult commune of Ky Son district, the whole commune has 177.80 hectares of agricultural land in 5 villages: Don Boong, Na Loi, Na Khuong, Pieng Lau and Huoi Xan village, growing 104.5 hectares of wet rice, of which fragrant rice has about 25 hectares.
Orientation to attach OCOP "star"
Fragrant rice was first planted in Na Khuong's fields by Mr. Vi Duyen Hong from another place around 1993. The fragrant rice fields were soaked with cool water from Tam stream, making the rice grains sticky and especially fragrant "from inside the house to outside the alley". Fragrant rice is locally called "khâu chao hom", with the advantages of adapting to soil and climate and giving high economic value when the selling price is always twice as high as other rice varieties, for many years 100% of households in the two villages of Na Khuong and Na Loi have grown this fragrant rice.
Mr. Vi Duyen Hong said that a special feature of this rice variety is that it is only grown in fields with water flowing from Tam stream that the rice will be fragrant and delicious. If grown in fields with water from other streams, the aroma will almost be lost. Therefore, out of 5 villages in Na Loi, only 2 grow fragrant rice.
 |
People in Na Khuong village, Na Loi commune harvest fragrant rice. Photo: provided by the facility |
At the end of 2021, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development also began implementing a model of improving and restoring fragrant rice varieties to create a scientific basis for mass production and expanding the area. Mr. Vi Oanh - Head of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Ky Son district also said: Fragrant rice has entered the subconscious of many generations of Na Loi people, it is a precious rice variety that needs to be preserved and maintained. Currently, the district is orienting to build fragrant rice products that meet OCOP standards, not only to affirm the brand of local products but also to help people preserve a traditional cultural feature, increase income fromagricultural production.
Mr. Ngo Hoang Linh - Director of the Center for Science and Technology Application, Nghe An Department of Science and Technology also affirmed that in 2018, the center implemented a project to preserve the genetic resources of Na Loi fragrant rice. The conservation is not only to preserve valuable genetic resources, but also to serve scientific research, serving the breeding of rice varieties with higher productivity and quality.
The Department of Science and Technology, which is carrying out the conservation of this rice variety, has assessed it as a valuable rice variety and a valuable genetic resource. After the process of conserving the fragrant rice gene source, the Center for Application of Science and Technology has also reported and proposed that management agencies and research institutes use the fragrant rice gene source, especially the gene that can withstand harsh weather conditions, to breed rice varieties that adapt to the climate and produce higher yields. However, to develop this rice variety into a commodity that can compete with the market and the tastes of the majority of consumers, it is necessary to meet economic calculations.
“Currently, Na Loi fragrant rice is still as “in demand” as before, when after the November harvest, which is the time near the traditional Tet holiday, consumer demand increases, but Na Loi fragrant rice produced is not enough to sell to local people in and outside the commune. However, due to the “choosy” location and long growing period, the yield is lower than that of regular rice varieties, so expanding the area and aiming to get the OCOP star for fragrant rice is facing difficulties”, said Ms. Pit Thi Ha - Chairman of the People's Committee of Na Loi commune.