The Đồng Thành orange orchard (Yên Thành district) has begun its harvest season.
There are still nearly two months until the Lunar New Year, but at this time, the orange groves in Dong Thanh commune, Yen Thanh district, are already ablaze with ripe, golden oranges. Locals have begun harvesting the oranges after a year of careful cultivation.
Early in the morning, in the family's lush, fruit-laden orange orchard. Mr. Truong Van Bien in Dong Trung hamlet, Dong Thanh commune, has seen a bustling influx of traders coming to buy his oranges. Mr. Bien said: "The orange orchard will be harvested from now until the Lunar New Year. We usually choose the ripest oranges, those with the highest sweetness, to harvest first."
The product is divided into two categories: Grade 1 oranges sell for 45,000 VND/kg, and Grade 2 oranges sell for 35,000 VND/kg, a higher price compared to previous years. At this time, customers from many places are calling to place orders, so workers have to harvest daily.
Reportedly, Mr. Bien's family's orange orchard covers an area of 4.8 hectares, of which 80% is the Xa Doai yellow-fleshed orange variety and 20% is the Van Du orange variety, estimated to yield over 20 tons of fruit per hectare this season.
To achieve a high-yield, high-quality orange orchard, Mr. Bien sought advice on cultivation techniques from experts at the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences. In addition to following VietGAP standards, Mr. Bien also uses chili peppers, garlic, ginger, and other ingredients to create biological preparations, ensuring the oranges are safe for consumption.
Nearby is the owner of Dai Viet orange orchard. The owner of this orchard said that his family's orange grove covers more than 10 hectares and they started harvesting over a week ago. Traders from all over come to buy the oranges, selling 1-2 tons per day. They anticipate a peak harvest of 4-5 tons, requiring them to hire dozens of people to pick oranges continuously for several days to meet market demand.
"This year's yield has decreased due to recent rains, causing a significant amount of oranges to fall off the trees. However, we estimate that we will harvest over 100 tons of oranges, selling them for over 3 billion VND. After deducting expenses, we will have a profit of over 1.6 billion VND," shared the owner of Dai Viet orange orchard.
Mr. Le Van Minh, a trader specializing in purchasing oranges in Dien Chau district, shared: "The oranges from Dong Thanh commune are of very high quality, with a distinctive aroma, a sweet and refreshing taste, and attractive appearance, making them popular with customers near and far. Every day I buy 4-6 tons of Dong Thanh oranges to supply markets in the northern provinces and Vinh City."
Mr. Ngo Van Tuan, Chairman of the People's Committee of Dong Thanh commune, said: The entire commune currently has more than 125 hectares of Vinh oranges, mainly delicious varieties such as Xa Doai with golden flesh, Van Du… Of these, over 70 hectares of oranges have been granted VietGAP certification.
Because of its high quality, Dong Thanh oranges are well-known to many customers. Mainly traders from all over the province come to buy them to resell in the northern and southern provinces. To date, the entire commune has harvested over 200 tons of oranges.
Although the harvest wasn't as bountiful as in previous years due to weather conditions, prices were high this year. The entire Dong Thanh commune estimates a harvest of 1,300 tons of oranges, generating over 42 billion VND in revenue. The commune is encouraging residents to use biological products instead of pesticides to produce "clean oranges" that are safe for consumers.
Oranges are becoming the main crop helping the people of Dong Thanh to "transform" their lives. Many households here earn billions of dong per year from orange cultivation.
In the coming period, the commune will continue to transform its crop structure, expanding the area for orange cultivation to create a specialized orange growing area according to VietGAP standards, aiming for sustainable development.
