Cavendish bananas economic value on the barren land

Quang Ngai 24/3 Agriculture and Forestry Joint Stock Company has flexibly changed the barren land into a specialized Cavendish banana-growing area for export, to adapt to the difficulties of the market in 2021.

Cavendish banana products grown in Quang Ngai meet export standards to China and Korea. Photo: L.K.

The wide, green fields of Cavendish banana have opened up a new and more effective direction in Pho Nhon (Duc Pho Town, Quang Ngai province) which is barren and infertile. Here, new scientific and technical advances in banana farming have been applied to create quality products that meet export standards.

"To be successful today, it is a great effort and also the enthusiasm of the company's officers and workers", said Mr. Tran Nguyen Giang, Deputy Director of Quang Ngai 24/3 Agriculture and Forestry Joint Stock Company said.

Three years ago, hundreds of hectares in Pho Nhon also had only traditional crops such as acacia, cassava, or sugarcane. Although these crops have low economic value, due to barren soil and scarce irrigation water, people do not know how to grow other crops with higher economic value.

After a long time of studying and visiting the models, the Director of Quang Ngai 24/3 Agriculture and Forestry Joint Stock Company at that time, Mr. Le Duong, realized the potential of the Cavendish banana tree. By 2019, Mr. Duong had hired a technical team to survey and invest in infrastructure to start building a model to develop this crop.

“The land here has been dry for up to 6 months. Meanwhile, the banana is a plant that needs a lot of water. On average, a tree needs from 25-30 liters of water per day. Therefore, we had to build up to 3 pumping stations and a drip irrigation system. The initial cost of implementing this model is very large,” shared Mr. Giang.

After nearly 1 year, the results obtained are quality and beautiful banana chambers, meeting export standards

“2020 is the first year the company exports bananas to two main markets: China and Korea. Each country has different and strongly strict import standards. Therefore, to meet their requirements is not easy, having to applying in many complicated techniques from seeding to harvesting," said Mr. Giang.

Although this is the first time this plant variety is grown in Quang Ngai province, with the correct application of techniques and suitable for local weather and climate conditions, the products harvested are of high quality.

With a model area of ​​25ha, in 2020, Quang Ngai 24/3 Agriculture and Forestry Joint Stock Company has exported about 800 tonnes of Cavendish banana to foreign countries. The average price is about VND 6,200 per kilogram. Cavendish banana has gradually asserted its reputation in the market.

In 2021, Quang Ngai 24/3 Agriculture and Forestry Joint Stock Company will increase the planting area to 40 hectares. In 2 months (June and July 2021), the company's export orders are very favorable. But in the following months, the situation of the Covid-19 epidemic developed complicatedly. Vietnam's agricultural products and fruits were also affected, and export activities faced difficulties.

Leaders of Quang Ngai 24/3 Agriculture and Forestry Joint Stock Company decided to sell to the domestic market. The company determined that ripe bananas will be consumed in the domestic market instead of green bananas as exported.

“We have invested in building 4 furnaces to incubate ripe bananas for the domestic market. In Quang Ngai, Quang Nam provinces, and Da Nang City, Cavendish bananas are delicious, so people are very popular. Most agents have sold out of goods,” said Mr. Tran Nguyen Giang, Deputy Director of Quang Ngai 24/3 Agriculture and Forestry Joint Stock Company.

In 2021, the company's Cavendish banana output reaches more than 1,000 tonnes. Compared to export, the average domestic consumption price is about VND 4,500 per kilogram. During the Covid-19 epidemic, many other products blocked output, the fact that all products of Quang Ngai 24/3 Agriculture and Forestry Joint Stock Company were still less affected, which can be considered an unexpected success.

According to Mr. Tran Nguyen Giang, 2021 is a really difficult year for businesses, but the Company has overcome it. In the coming time, gradually adapting to the epidemic will help many companies resolve difficulties, and the export market will gradually stabilize again. This is also a condition for Quang Ngai 24/3 Agriculture and Forestry Joint Stock Company to take new steps and increase production efficiency.

“The quality, if the quality is critical for a product, then don't be afraid of the consumption. Our company also has enough potential to create quality products that meet the strictest standards for export. However, the most difficult thing for the Company is that the land is still scattered.

Therefore, we hope that the local government will create favorable conditions for the use of concentrated land. This will facilitate the investment in applying science and technology to production to become a bright spot in the province's agriculture. From there, forming a chain of links with people, helping them improve economic efficiency," shared Mr. Tran Nguyen Giang.