Farmers in the Central Highlands cried because the potato crop failed, it was so cheap

Phu Thien farmers are worried because potato prices have dropped dramatically.

This year, localities in the Southeast region have the largest sweet potato area in Gia Lai province. Of which, the largest is Phu Thien district with more than 3,400 hectares, Ia Pa district 324 hectares, Ayun Pa town 32 hectares. Instead of being excited like every year, sweet potato growers this season are all frowning and worried about crop failure and price loss.

The bright sun made the sad face of Mr. Ma Van Toi (Thang Loi 1 village, Ia Sol commune, Phu Thien district) even more sad. He said last year, his family planted 5 hectares and, after deducting expenses, earned a profit of nearly 200 million VND/ha.

Excited, this year, Mr. To rented another 3 hectares to grow sweet potatoes with the hope of changing his life. Mr. Toi calculated that the land rent is 30-40 million VND/hectare and the investment in seeds, fertilizer, and labor is 80 million VND/ha. If the current price and productivity is 4,000 VND/kg, there will be no profit. even heavy losses.

“This year’s weather is unfavorable and the soil is poor, so the yield is only about 17 tons/ha, much lower than last year. Moreover, the price of sweet potatoes is about 4,000 VND/kg, while the price of the previous crop ranged from 11,000-13,000 VND/kg. Now I still have to worry about income,” Mr. Toi said sadly.

Mr. Pham Van Hoan, a trader in Dak Lak province who has been buying sweet potatoes in Gia Lai for many years, commented that compared to previous years, this year’s potatoes were rotten a lot, so he had to ask collectors to carefully select them. Every day, Mr. Hoan mobilizes 3 trucks with a capacity of 27 tons each to buy sweet potatoes in the southeastern region of the province. For type 1 tubers, Mr. Hoan bought them for about 6,000 VND/kg, while type 2 tubers (too big tubers) only got about 4,000 VND/kg. Mr. Hoan said that currently the sweet potato consumption market in the country is still stable, but due to increased area, massive harvest, and oversupply, prices have dropped sharply.

This year’s Japanese sweet potato yield in Gia Lai is not high.

Mr. Mai Ngoc Quy, Deputy Head of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Phu Thien district, said that in the past 2 years, China’s acceptance of Vietnam’s sweet potatoes for official export has caused the price of this product to increase, with profits 3-4 times higher than compared to other countries. with rice cultivation. This is the main reason why people in the district rush to plant sweet potatoes in the Winter-Spring crop of 2023-2024. Output is unstable, while the area has increased a lot, so traders are forcing prices.

Regarding the reduced yield of sweet potatoes, Mr. Quy explained: “Many people do not have experience in caring for them, do not treat the soil carefully, do not apply lime, or soak the fields to kill harmful insects, so the potatoes become rotten. In particular, some households see that prices are low so they no longer focus on investing in care.”

Phu Thien District People’s Committee said the estimated total sweet potato output in the 2023-2024 Winter-Spring crop is about 68,800 tons. Up to now, the harvested sweet potato area is 2,064 hectares (about 60%), the remaining area is expected to be harvested by April 30.

According to the District People’s Committee, traders are purchasing in moderation and tend to reduce the quantity, making it difficult to find outlets for sweet potatoes, while the remaining area is approaching harvest. Therefore, the District People’s Committee has proposed that the Provincial People’s Committee pay attention to calling on businesses to consume for people, calling for investment in factories to process and consume sweet potato products in the province in association with the introduction of varieties with high quality. quality, disease-free, high productivity so people can feel secure in production.

The situation is similar in Phu Thien, this year, according to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Dak Nong province, the locality has proposed a plan to produce 5,141 hectares of sweet potatoes, with an estimated output of 76,578 tons, an increase of 3,167 tons compared to 2023. Potato productivity of Most people in Dak Nong province are at high prices, however, currently traders only buy at prices of 7,000 VND/kg type 1 and 3,000 VND/kg type 2.

Tien Le