Move to organic to avoid rising fertiliser costs

Vietnam farmers are turning organic in order to avoid the rising costs of fertiliser.

The move is being driven by the government in Hanoi, which is employing science and technology into agricultural production.

It sees the shift towards organic farming as enhancing food safety.

The Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine has resulted in rising costs in fuel, fertilisers, pesticides, cultivars – and resulted in declining farm profits.

Hanoi has responded by developing green, environment-friendly agricultural models, aiming to increase efficiency by saving on materials and recycling agricultural waste at the household level.

Agriculture businesses in the city are demanding that their farming suppliers produce chemical-free produce and work to enhance the environment.

In addition to meeting consumer demands for organic food, the companies say they can charge up to 20 per cent more than for traditionally grown produce.

Some 40,000ha of land in and around Hanoi that formerly grew rice using traditional methods has now been converted to organic farming – with 3,000ha dedicated to vegetables, 7,440ha for fruit trees, and the remainder growing high-quality rice.

Meanwhile, the northeastern Vietnam province of Quang Ninh is utilising Covid-19 free zones to grow produce intended for export to China.

By being able to assure the Chinese that the growing area is free of the disease, it has managed to keep its border gates open to allow trade to continue.

A number of additional precautions are taken, including using customs agents to deliver the goods to the border, and using a designated team of drivers and porters to do the handling.

All customs officers, porters, drivers, customs agents and others who work at the checkpoints have to present negative RT-PCR test results issued within 48 hours or take self-paid rapid tests at the entrance to the border checkpoints.

They must also be vaccinated against Covid-19 with at least two primary doses and are restricted to so-called “green zones” within the border area, maintaining isolation with outsiders for a minimum duration of 15 days. China is Vietnam’s largest importer of agricultural, forestry and aquatic products.