Tung Coong Valley

(Baonghean) - People in the surrounding villages call the valley in Chi Khe commune (Con Cuong district) Tung Coong or Thung Coong. The area covers about 200 hectares, surrounded by high mountains and dotted with dozens of small huts where villagers cultivate sugarcane, raise buffaloes, cows, and chickens. Nearly 40 years ago, people began to develop this valley. Fifteen years ago, the Song Lam Sugar Factory developed the sugarcane raw material area, the main crop of the entire region.

I remember those days, the people were so excited about sugarcane. The villagers were used to growing sugarcane in their gardens, a few clumps each, mainly for consumption and to tie around the altar during Tet (Lunar New Year). For the first time, they heard that a factory would come to contract for sugarcane purchase, eliminating the need to rely on private traders like with corn and peanuts. They even built a road into Tung Coong for trucks to transport the sugarcane. It seemed that sugarcane would transform this valley. The villagers would surely become wealthy. Thinking this, people eagerly prepared the land for sugarcane cultivation. Those with less land planted five or seven acres, while those with more planted several hectares. It was also the first time that tillage machines had come to the valley. Thus, sugarcane brought so many "firsts" to the Tung Coong valley. Back then, the small valley echoed with the sounds of plows and excavators building roads. Wherever the road was built, people's spirits soared. In just a few months, a barren area that had previously only grown corn and peanuts, with low yields and prices, suddenly became a sugarcane producing region. The entire valley is a vibrant green, a color of hope.

Only a few people were seen harvesting sugarcane in the fields.

I went away to study, and my work swept me into a different, more hectic pace of life, completely different from this small valley. Over the years, the calluses on my hands gradually faded. I carried with me the memories of those hard days, of the bare feet of mountain girls clinging to the mud with heavy baskets on their backs. And the green of the sugarcane in the valley became a beautiful memory. Today, I'm not traveling on the familiar steep mountain road from the village into the valley anymore. There's now a paved road from National Highway 7 to Tung Coong. I drive and imagine the green of the sugarcane with excitement. The paved road just touches the sugarcane growing area and then ends abruptly. All the side roads and shortcuts in the valley are still rough dirt roads with large and small stones. I look up at the low hills. On the harvested sugarcane fields, people are plowing the land to plant the next crop. Besides sugarcane, the valley now has the green of acacia and cassava trees. So this land has more shades of green.

I stood admiring the newly planted cassava patch of Mr. Lu Van Huong in Nam Dinh village (Chi Khe – Con Cuong). The young cassava plants were sprouting tender leaves. Mr. Huong, who is just over 50 years old, has been farming for more than 20 years. He's from the same village and invited me to visit his small hut. Seeing me lingering in front of the cassava patch, Mr. Huong seemed to understand and immediately said, "Sugarcane isn't profitable anymore! Many families have switched to growing cassava…" Then he boasted that his family had harvested two cassava crops, each earning 27 million VND. Cash in hand. Buyers would pick up the cassava, weigh it right in the field, and pay immediately. It's easier than growing sugarcane. Growing cassava doesn't require as much care as sugarcane, and the cost of fertilizer and pesticides is lower. In terms of immediate profit, cassava is still better than sugarcane. His family also has another acacia plantation, only about 4,000 square meters, but last year they also earned over 30 million VND.

Near Mr. Huong's field is a sugarcane plantation of about half a hectare belonging to Mr. Lo Phuong's family. A few people from outside the village were scattered around, helping to cut sugarcane and gather the tops for their buffaloes and cows. One sugarcane cutter said that in previous years, after Tet (Lunar New Year), the villagers hadn't finished planting yet, so the demand for grass for their buffaloes and cows to plow the fields was high, and the sugarcane fields were always crowded with people helping to cut the grass. This year, after planting before Tet, hardly anyone is going to gather grass for their buffaloes anymore. The labor force has to rely on relatives and neighborhood groups. Despite having decades of experience in sugarcane cultivation, the people of Tung Coong are still very passive in terms of manpower, especially during the harvest. This year, fewer people are gathering the tops for their buffaloes, so some families have to spend dozens of days cutting to finish. It was only early afternoon, but the sugarcane fields were already sparsely populated. Only the homeowners and a few relatives remained to cut the sugarcane. A young woman chimed in: "At this rate, it might take a whole week to finish cutting all the sugarcane."

About a five-minute walk from Mr. Lo Phuong's sugarcane field is the collection point for Mr. Vi Hien. I arrived just as a sugar factory truck was coming to load the sugarcane. The pile of sugarcane, estimated at just over 5 tons, required nearly a dozen people to load onto the truck. Mr. Quang Van Hoa, over 60 years old, whose field is more than half a kilometer from Mr. Hien's house, still had to come and help. He explained, "After Tet, the young people in the village go to the South to earn money. Only the elderly are left behind, so we have to do this hard work. Almost every sugarcane farmer is short of labor." Having worked in sugarcane farming myself, I completely understand the plight of sugarcane farmers like Mr. Quang Van Hoa, who toil under the sun and rain. From planting to harvesting takes a whole year. Throughout the year, they weed, strip the leaves, and spray pesticides to kill pests. Just like rice farmers, sugarcane growers never have a break.

Mr. Quang Van Hoa is loading sugarcane.

During a break, Mr. Luong Van Thanh, a sugarcane farmer who has been involved since the early days of developing the sugarcane growing area, said: "After many years of using only a few sugarcane varieties, they have degenerated, the soil is barren, the sugarcane plants are stunted, and yields have decreased. Meanwhile, sugarcane prices have been continuously falling in recent years. This sugarcane season, the ceiling price is over 800,000 VND per ton, that's for grade 1 sugarcane, while in the entire sugarcane growing area, maybe only a few plots are grade 1. Some households are classified as low-grade, only receiving 650,000 VND per ton. Meanwhile, the prices of pesticides and fertilizers have remained the same for many years. After deducting labor costs, fertilizer, pesticides, and additional expenses for Tet (Lunar New Year), some households are left with very little money when they receive their sugarcane payment!"

The agricultural officer from the sugar factory, present to process the sugarcane shipment, chimed in, mentioning that the sugarcane variety was gradually degenerating after many years of use. The sugar factory is cultivating new varieties in Tho Son commune (Anh Son district), imported from Thanh Hoa province, but it will be at least two more years before the new varieties are available. Nevertheless, this sweet crop has taken root in the valley for 15 years and has brought about some changes to the lives of the local people. It can be said that this is also a success. Therefore, the people of Tung Coong are very attached to sugarcane…

For many years, the farmers in the Tung Coong valley have been worried about their water supply. The valley, spanning hundreds of hectares, has only one small stream at its end. The villagers have considered building a dam to block the main stream and provide water to the households and farms within. But they only dare to dream, as such a project costing billions of dong is beyond their means. “If water came, this valley would surely become a village,” Mr. Thoan said, his gaze drifting through the hazy smoke of his cigarette… Then, he gazed out at the endless expanse of green sugarcane, forests, and rocky mountains. It was a rare moment of tranquility in the day for the sugarcane farmers here!

Huu Vi